Ignorance is bliss
by Merilsell
Summary: Shuurei swore herself never to let love come into her way. As an official this was a luxury she couldnt afford. But why keeps she thinking about Ryuuki after they made that gamble? And why is he avoiding her? Set after anime season 2. Currently ON HOLD.
1. A gamble can be risky,,,or needed

_**A/N: **Hello there. First FF ever here xD My Story is set after season 2 of the anime. A bit AU-ish since the happenings of Novel 13 and 14 don´t take place in my story. Beware (its going to be) M-Rated for lemony goodness in two of the later chapter. Purely shiny OTP RyuuXShuu-story but of course with a lot of the other characters involved as well. _

_**Disclaimer****:** I obviously don´t own Saiunkoku Monogatari and their characters. No not at all._

_**Thx to:**__Indira14 for beta reading this chapter._

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**Chapter 1: A gamble can be risky....or the thing which is needed**

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_**"Absence makes the heart grow fonder" - **__English idioms_

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Shuurei could hardly stifle a yawn as she finished yet another page of her report. She glared at the looming pile of paperwork before her, as if willing it to shrink in size. She had once again sacrificed sleep to stay over night in the archive for getting the massive amount of paperwork done.

There was no other way of doing so, because it was an important case she worked on and Kouki her chief of the section of Government inspection needed the finished files as soon as possible. Where the hell was Seiga anyway?

"Good-for-nothing idiot, can't be counted on to do his share," Shuurei muttered to herself before shaking her head and putting down the pen, taking a deep breath as she did so.

"Well, okay, maybe it's time for a little break - just a little - to ease my mind; it is a wonderful clear night after all." the young woman said and decided to take a short walk in the beautiful royal garden before finishing the rest...or as much as possible. She sighed.

"Damn you, Seiga. How should I alone get this much work done before morning?"

Shuurei rubbed her tired eyes with both of her hands. Well, she had to make it or Seiga and Kouki would never acknowledge her as official of their section and whining about it wasn´t helpful at all.

"I practically begged chief to be allowed to work over these files, so it's my turn to repay his trust. Well, after finishing the walk," she decided, while leaving the archive in the direction of the door.

As soon as she stepped outside, Shuurei inhaled the cold fresh air and immediately felt her mind freed a bit from the hours of repetitive desk work. It was a perfect night to take a walk, not too chilly anymore and the half rounded moon shone brightly over the palace garden.

Shuurei found it quite amazing how quiet and peaceful this normally overly busy place could be late at night. She didn´t even see a single guard around, which either meant they went patrolling or to sleep, she silently mused. _It´s wonderful here - now I understand why Ryuuki liked to stroll through the garden, when he couldn´t sleep_, Shuurei thought with a faint smile on her lips.

_Wait_..., her eyes widened, ..._.what if I meet him now while wandering around here? He is the last distraction I could need now. ...and Ryuuki doesn´t even know I´m here at this time of the night, so meeting him would be kind of... awkward_. She panicked lightly.

Actually, a small part of her wished for meeting him this way (though she would never admit it to anyone). Neither had seen the other for the past few weeks due to being overloaded with their work. Shuurei could imagine that ruling a country wasn´t a job which left much free time and it was quite noticeable to her that Ryuuki took his duty as emperor much more seriously now compared to the times before. _Yes, he was handling things more maturely and had indeed grown as a king - since that incident in the Kyuusai cove_ - this was a certainty she could not deny.

Yet somehow she couldn´t shake off the nagging feeling of him....avoiding her. Albeit this fact seemed quite ironic to Shuurei - _Wasn't he always the demanding one in their relationship?_ In their always returning routine of Ryuuki confessing his undying love to her, while Shuurei was the one who constantly shrugged him off, saying he should give his love to someone else? Even after she had told him dozens of times that he had to give up, the young kind had always refused to follow her advice, three years long.

All the more was she taken aback as Ryuuki made this kind of suggestion not so long ago: A gamble, an agreement. Shuurei could easy recall every single one of their words in her mind, as if it were said yesterday:

"An emperor must marry. If that is a duty as a king we´ll get married. This means we can´t wait forever for you, Shuurei. In addition, if we marry someone other than you it will be Jyuusan-hime."

_Wait wha...huh? Why all the sudden? _Instantly, her mind and heart started racing again, just like that time she had heard those words from him. She couldn't believe what he was saying there; Shuurei felt her face fall out in disbelief.

Ryuuki observed her reaction carefully and was pleased with what he saw. _That's good, it looks like we still have a chance, _he inwardly smiled. "So let's play a game: we´ll set a time limit," the young emperor added. "If you continue to escape us until then you win. We´ll never say that I want to marry you again; We won´t trouble you."

Shuurei couldn´t do anything except stare at him, dumbfounded.

"However, if we manage to make you accept our proposal, we win. How about that?" Ryuuki finished and looked expectantly at her, hoping she would react the way he thought she would.

_What. He´s suggesting a _**gamble**_? _This was all she was able to think in this moment. However, what a foolish desperate idea of Ryuuki. _Why is he doing that? He knows I would never give up my dream being an official to marry him_. "It sounds like you are at great disadvantage," she proudly declared to him. "Well, fair enough. I´ll play your game. What is your time limit?"

Ryuuki smiled inwardly - she had reacted like he thought. He was pleased to know that he knew her well enough. And with that thought he bowed down to her to whisper the time limit in her ear.

What Shuurei heard then didn´t surprise her - it was just so typical for them.

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**A/N:** _This is just the start of a longer RyuukiXShuurei story. Once planned as lemon OS, the story itself grew bigger and bigger with each day. Since this has been my first written piece/story ever (here has the pandora box opened xD) , I´ve overworked the chapters later one more time due to it´s lack of characterization. Oh yeah and it´s pretty much fluffy (and partly smutty), so bring your toothbrush along xD_


	2. Irritations of heart

_**A/N**: Aaand here I proudly present the complete overworked/edited, new and shiny second chapter...it took me a while I know - sorry about that. I highly recommend to read it again even if you have read it before, because now its in the way it´s supposed to be and also many details got changed. _

**_A huge thanks to:_ **_my lovely beta reader Indira14 for once again helping me to improve this chapter._

_**Disclaimer:** Still apply. Blah._**  
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**_**The affections are like lightning: you cannot tell where they will strike till they have fallen.****" **-Jean Baptiste Lacordaire_

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**_Chapter 2: Irritations of heart _**

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Two months had passed since that day they made that arrangement. She walked on until she stood right in front of the alley where the sakura trees were located. She didn´t know why she was wandering this way and before she fully realized it, she was already there. In front of the tree where Ryuuki and she first met so long ago. The branches of the trees rustled in the fresh breeze and the cold wind caused her to shiver momentarily. In spite of the chilly gust at times, it was indeed one of those many mild nights lately, indicating that the winter was almost gone. As Shuurei looked up to the clear night sky and to the branches of "their" sakura tree, she recognize a few little buds, which would surely bear flowers soon.

"**Until the cherry blossoms bloom..."**

These words said by Ryuuki echoed clearly in her mind. This was their time limit ...and in barely one month it would become spring - this she knew for sure....

**"**Looks like I´ll win, huh?" she silently breathed to herself. "Ryuuki will give up on me and marry Jyuusan-hime ...it would be better for all of us, I never intended to give up my job for him anyway."

But why was she willing to make this agreement with him months ago? She failed to find a proper explanation for her actions back then. Maybe she wanted to proof something to him, just what was it? In her eyes Jyuusan-hime was the most fitting wife for him. She was beautiful and well mannered; more than Shuurei ever could be.

Jyuusan-hime was literally predestined to be on the side of the emperor, because she would be by far the more elegant empress. Shuurei sighed - why was this bothering her anyway?

No, she was just imaging that because if Ryuuki would take her as his wife all of their problems would be solved. Shuurei wouldn't have to give up being court official and Ryuuki could solve the heir problem and also represent an elegant empress on his side. Yet there was a slightly dejected feeling spreading inside of her as she thought of Jyuusan-hime as Ryuuki´s wife. She shrugged to get rid of it and didn´t really understand where it came from, because there was no reason for feeling down, was there?She indeed was happy with her fulfilling job. It had been her life's dream to work as imperial official and since a few years, she was living her dream. And it was all thanks to Ryuuki, who made it possible with the relatively new law he installed, which allowed women to take part in the world of politics, something had been strictly forbidden before.

Therefore, Shuurei felt a strong obligation to support him as a subordinate with all her heart. ...Although, that was not the only reason. She also thought that Ryuuki was a fine king ...and man. She reminisced on the mental picture of him - he always seemed to be happy when seeing her. So it was utterly beyond her comprehension why Ryuuki avoided her since he had made this agreement with her. She hadn´t seen him for a couple of weeks now, so there was in fact very less time left for him to "win"._ No I must just imagine that he doesn´t want to cross my way, she shrugged, I bet he´s __just __busy with governing his country._

Shuurei was confused by those nonsensical thoughts which suddenly flooded her mind.

_Why do I care so much about this fact anyway? I mean, I should be more happy about the fact that Ryuuki stopped chasing after me, shouldn´t I? It´s better for us both._

Despite these thoughts, Shuurei recently caught herself thinking of him and what he was doing from more often than she wanted and it really bugged her. She took a deep breath and leaned on the tree, while sinking into her thoughts again. Why did her mind fill up with questions regarding Ryuuki when she had some quiet moments to herself?She had sworn to herself never to fall in love- it was the last thing she could ever need. In the world of politics one always had be tough and hence love wasn´t something Shuurei would attach any great importance to. Because to love meant to show feelings - a luxury Shuurei couldn´t allow herself in a world ruled by men.

_No it isn´t love, I´m just worried about him_, she reassured herself. She hadn´t seen him for several weeks now and didn´t know if he was okay at all. And before she fully realized it, her mind was annoyingly circling around Ryuuki again. _Why doesn´t he come to see me anymore?_, she was asking herself, before she wondered about how he was doing. _Is he still afraid of sleeping alone in the dark? He shouldn´t be lonely anymore since he now has Jyuusan-hime on his side, right?_

She recalled seeing him in a few official meetings at last, but it didn´t gave her the clarity of mind she searched for. Because she knew that in those meetings Ryuuki always had to hold up the charade of being "the emperor". So seeing him then wasn´t really conducive to her knowing if the person Ryuuki was okay.

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The young woman tried to focus her mind on the more important things like her actual work, but no matter how hard she tried to desist, her mind kept circling back on finding the reason why Ryuuki avoided her like the plague. He never acted that way before and this was something Shuurei confused her more than she liked to. She felt a nagging feeling creeping up in her stomach and remain there, much to her discomfiture.

_No, it couldn´t be that I actually miss him, or could it?_ She bit her lower lip on this thought and tried to get rid of it, but failed. So Shuurei indeed became annoyed with herself: "Oh great, just great. Instead of finding a solution for the problem I have on my files I´m worrying about that stupid emperor!" she blurted out into the night. Then a thought hit her mind.

_What if I shortly check up his place to see if Ryuuki is okay?_ No, she shouldn´t do that, because she knew the idea was much too weird to implement and she had to get back to business; there was still so much work to do!

So despite knowing that giving in to this slightly unusual idea wasn´t the wisest thing to do; Shuurei´s feet already seemed to find their destination of their own. Her room had been next to his back in the days; therefore, it wasn't surprising at all that she didn't have any trouble finding the correct way again. The king's private chamber, where she had once stayed the night with him... at the time as he had protected her from the poison by drinking it himself.

"Yeah great plan, Shuurei what now? Knocking on his door? I couldn´t peek in, I´m sure the guards would arrest me on the spot...or at least ask what I´m doing here," she quietly muttered to herself. Meeting a guard now would end in a most humiliating situation, so she'd definitely like to avoid that particular confrontation like the devil avoided the holy water. _How am I supposed to answer anyway? Excuse me, Mr. imperial guard for sneaking around here, but I haven´t had a small talk with his highness for over two months! That's the reason why I´m now checking him up late at night?! Yeah right! Not exactly my duty as his subordinate. What the heck was I __**thinking**__ by coming here? _Shuurei was highly annoyed with her irrational act now.

_I just should be glad that no guard is around...again_. Slowly she wondered if there were any guards on duty at all tonight. She pondered if she should inform Seiran about their bad discipline tomorrow. _I mean what if something happens to Ryuuki? ...ahh, not again,_ she shrugged, feeling perturbed and embarrassed for giving in to her stupid idea. She knew she should go back to her desk and finish her paperwork... after all, that was so much more important than sneaking around here late at night and worrying about Ryuuki. _I shouldn´t be here at all._

She was sure he´d be okay and felt truly idiotic about the fact that she stood here - outside his room. Irked with herself and despite her intention to leave, her eyes still remained fixed on Ryuuki´s door. She shortly shrugged and slowly turned around to leave. _Let´s go back no-__-_

**"AAAAAAAAH!"**

A single scream parted the silence in the night.

" Ryuuki!!!" Shuurei yelled out in horror. All her former intentions were forgotten in a split second. It was Ryuuki who had screamed there - she would recognize his voice among thousands. Her mind raced and she was highly alarmed. What happened? Was he hurt?

She feared the worst, so she turned around as fast as she could and without thinking, practically barging into his room. As soon as she entered, she froze on the spot. Shuurei saw how Ryuuki sat up in his bed, panting heavily, his face deeply buried in both hands...and seemingly ...crying? She blinked and couldn´t believe her eyes, yet she felt how her heart faintly ached at the sight. Shuurei knew it was the wrong thing to do, but a bigger part of herself was curious about why Ryuuki was so devastated. So she shoved her doubts aside and slowly came closer until she stood in front of his bed. He still hadn´t noticed her ..."Ryu..uki...?" the young woman softly whispered his name, as if she were afraid to scare him even more with her words.

Finally, he recognized the source of the voice and thus turned around to her, while still shuddering massively. "Shuurei?" his tone revealed utter surprise and yet alleviation to see her. Looking straight at his face, Shuurei panicked inwardly,_ Oh god what was I thinking? What the hell am I doing here?_

She felt his inquiring gaze resting on her and briefly struggled for words, before blurting out at once, "Ehh, you know I had so much work, so I stayed in the archive over night but needed a break, so I took a walk in the garden and as I was nearby -_heaven forbids to tell him why_- she added mentally, "then I heard you scream. Where are all the guards by the way? It´s so weird no one is around."

Shuurei felt awkward to the bone, even more as she recognized that her face was burning, yet she didn´t dare to move from her spot. "What happened Ryuuki? Are you alright?" she added very quietly.

Ryuuki looked up at her, his eyes still blurred from the tears "I...I had a nightmare, a truly horrible one," he confessed in a nearly inaudible voice, still struggling to compose himself.

_So he's drenched in tears because of a nightmare?_, she narrowed her eyebrows in confusion "What was so horrible about it, Ryuuki?"

Instead of answering her question he suddenly reached out for her, grabbed her by the sleeves of her robe and without warning, pulled her close to him. It all happened in a blink of an eye, too fast for Shuurei´s mind to comprehend. The only thing she was able to notice was how her heart set out for a second at this sudden movement ...and how it started to palpitate faster as she found herself in his arms, in his crushing embrace.

A moment of silence passed, where neither of them said a word. After the initial shock had abated, she came back to her sense and the warmth of his body was more than ever obvious to her. At another time, she would have shoved him away instantly, like she used to but right now she was so captured in his arms that that was not an option. She reluctantly surrendered in his arms, a small part of her even wanting to.

Shuurei didn´t know why, but his embrace had a somehow calming and comforting effect on her. So despite her mind telling her it would be reasonable to get away from him, she closed her eyes to enjoy the warmth, which fully enveloped her. She decided that her emotional behavior was only due to the relief nothing happened to the emperor ...no, to _Ryuuki_.

"You died," his whisper suddenly broke the silence between the two and contemporaneously put Shuurei out of her daze.

Her eyes widened in bewilderment at his words. "Err what?"

The young emperor released her from the embrace but only so far that he was able to look into her brown eyes. "Shuurei, it..was..so real. I saw you...dying... right in front of my eyes. I couldn´t do anything to save you," he began to sob again, clinging onto the fabric of her arms.

She blinked, and stared dumbfounded at him, while her mind tried to grasp the meaning of his words._ The reason why he was so devastated earlier was due to what happened to me ….in a dream of his?_ She was taken aback and although she thought his behavior was a bit too extreme for just dreaming, Shuurei felt slightly flattered and wondered why such a strange warm feeling crept down to her stomach. "Hey, Ryuuki. It was just a dream you had, okay? I´m still here, alive and the same old Shuurei" , she smiled at him genuinely, trying to dispel his heavy thoughts.

"Yes, you are right," he responded with a loving expression on his face, gazing straight into her eyes. "Shuurei is Shuurei." With these words he reached out for her face, softly cupped her face with his fingers and turned her head lightly to caress her cheek with his fingertips. "We ar....I´m glad that it was just a dream after all," he smiled adoringly at her.

Shuurei's breath hitched, as she perceived how his light touch sent a furious shiver down her spine. Her mind was still occupied with comprehending the reason for it, and she felt her skin like burning on the place where Ryuuki´s fingers had barely brushed her. Why was it like that, why was she all feeling this? Then suddenly recognition hit her. _Oh no...it can´t be, please not!_, she began to panic at her realization, her breath trembled. This was the last thing she could need at all._ I´m just imaging that, right? This could not happen. _

"Shuurei? Are you okay?" Ryuuki looked puzzled at the image of his beloved before his eyes - she seemed to be really flustered and ...confused all a sudden and he failed to find a reason for it.

Shuurei´s mind raced back and forth, pondering how to get out of this situation without letting him notice something. His inquiring stare still lasted on her and made her feel cornered.

"I REALLY should go now. So much work and stuff", she hastily declared. Feeling all awkward by now, her face blushed deeply and she just hoped he wasn't observant enough to notice it in such faint light. "I...I´m g-glad you a-are okay, though," she stammered and tried to get up from his bed. He, however, didn´t release her.

"Ryuuki?" she uttered with a mixture of surprise and irritation in her voice.

"Shuurei, stay please," he looked pleadingly at her, clinging onto her as if his life depended on it. He hadn´t seen her for months and was delighted to have her near him, so there was no way he was letting her go now.

"N-n-no, ...I can´t," she murmured nervously and half-heartedly tried to get away from him again.

Even though Ryuuki failed to grasp exactly why, he knew her well enough to distinguish that Shuurei wasn´t her usual self tonight. At another time she would have snapped at him long before for acting like that, though she didn´t tonight. Seeing her acting so flustered instead in a situation, where she usually was always so violent and self-confident before, made her even more lovely in his eyes.

"Just a while, until I´m asleep again, we...I am still afraid of the dark," he confessed. _What an unconvincing reason_, he thought, yet he hoped it was persuasive enough.

Shuurei shortly got lost in his gaze and felt slightly lightheaded, before she managed to avert her eyes from him. As a person who always chose her words wisely she had never expected her tongue to be faster than her brain one day.

"Okay, but really only until then."

_Damn it, why did I just say _**that**_?! Shuurei, remember you wanted to go, so whatever happened to that_, she scolded herself mentally. Shuurei sighed. Since when did she give in to him so easily? It was never like this before, and now, how come she couldn't even deny him this one tiny thing? Was it because he looked at her in such a charming way that she couldn´t say no to him? She bit her lower lip in quiet contemplation, and let out another sigh, _Wait, Did I just think he was...charming?_ Since when was his childish behavior charming to her? It was just beyond her understanding how it could come so far. Annoyed with herself, she let out an inaudible sigh and only hoped that he would be asleep soon.

Ryuuki was wondered why she didn´t object when he took her hand in his as he laid down again, though he enjoyed it very much. Shuurei, however, sat still on his bed right next to him, shocked by the feeling caused by her tiny hand gently entwined in his. Her heart throbbed frantically. Several endless minutes passed, where she barely dared to move or breathe and just remained in that rigid position. She gulped as she tried to figure the shower of emotions she was feeling due his presence and soft caresses of his hand, fearing Ryuuki could hear her heart, which was surely beating out of her chest now.

After another while, she noticed that everything finally went quiet again. Shuurei assumed that he had fallen asleep at last and turned around to check, only to find his face right next to hers. She nearly let out a shriek but froze at the unexpected sight in front of her. Despite her intention to scold him for scaring her like that, she didn´t say anything, because at that moment Shuurei was too captivated by his face. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn´t avert her eyes from him. Although she already had seen Ryuuki´s face a dozen times before in the past two years, now it was as if she was truly looking at it for the first time. She knew he possessed an annoyingly beautiful face, yet she never noticed its fine details before. Like his well formed cheeks. Or his deep auburn eyes which were gazing back at her with surprise right now. Shuurei´s stare unintentionally landed on his full lips, before she shrugged mentally. Yet she caught herself thinking that every detail of his face seemed indeed so... so... lovely to her.

What the...

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	3. Stay with me

**___A/N ____: _**___Oookaaay this seemed to be a bit rushed to some around here, but it was planned to let it happen head over heels since this was originally planned as a lemon OS *drop* Though then the story grew bigger and complexer with each day and it become much more than just a OS *stares at the 12 written chapter now* xD So yeah fact is the story will unfold afterward. However its kinda hard to keep one IC in a lemony chapter since we will never see them act this way (lol) but after have rewritten the whole chapter its pretty much near to it...I think o.O I tried to reduce the OOC- moments with the new version to a minimum, so forgive me if there are any left. _

_It´s the complete beta-d version of chapter 3 - ....finally. Thx to ____J Luc Pitard for being my awesome beta reader._

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_**Chapter 3: Stay with me**

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"I... I thought you were sl-sleeping!'" Shuurei stuttered, blushing. Ryuuki answered with an apologetic smile while his gaze rested softly on her delicate face. His eyes were caught by her adorable flushed cheeks. He was tempted to reach out, to feel the heat on her porcelain skin, but refrained himself on second thought. Shuurei's face may be plain compared to other noble ladies he had seen but he loved every inch of it. To him, it was indeed the most beautiful one. This silly, fleeting moment where neither of them spoke a word created a strange mood between them. Ryuuki wondered why she didn't avert her eyes from his, though neither could he. He felt himself drawn to her cherry, enticing lips and before he fully realized it he was leaning closer, meeting those lips. He immediately felt the shift in her mood, how her body tensed at the touch of their lips. He knew that he'd probably get slapped for acting so forcefully. It had been always that way, so why should there been a change now? Yet, to his amazement, something occurred he'd never thought possible.

Shuurei suddenly relaxed in his arms and kissed him back.

Just lightly and hesitantly but it was enough to send Ryuuki to heaven. It was like in his dreams... no, better! In those two years, he had kissed her a couple of times but each was forced on her, she'd never responded. But now...

_She's. Really. Kissing. Me! _This thought was boldly hammering in his head. Overwhelmed by this new revelation, he drew her closer until he held her tight and renewed the kiss, this time with more passion. He was stunned that this one was also received by Shuurei without struggle and he found her even leaning in to it. Not that he was complaining- quite the opposite- he was amazed. He felt her arms wrap around his shoulders and her hands began lightly caressing his neck. Shuurei's hesitant action drove him crazy and left him shivering. Holding her in his arms like this after two endless years of longing and loneliness, was more than he ever dared to dream.

Their lips parted only to meet again with more desire. Her heart was beating wildly and her pulse raced. Enclosed in his arms, she felt Ryuuki's heart racing as well. Shuurei wondered why was she letting this happen? What was more, she didn't want him to stop. When Ryuuki had stolen her first kiss she was furious about it though that kiss was nothing compared to the way he kissed her now! The soft yet passionate way he claimed her lips made her feel dizzy and, oddly, so good. The warmth of his body had a very calming and comforting effect on her, while his kisses and light touches sent electric sensations down her spine and left her shivering with delight.

_Why was she feeling this way about Ryuuki all of a sudden?_

The lines between right or wrong were quickly blurring for Shuurei. A part of her knew what she was doing here wasn't right, though when he had first kissed her, she had forgotten about her intentions to flee from him, even forgotten that he was the emperor and she his subordinate. She was definitely crossing a line she'd never intended to cross.

Shuurei caught herself wanting more of it. More of his kisses, more of the warmth of his body and more of the feelings he caused her to feel inside. Somehow, it seemed that all of her fears and doubts vanished in his arms. She didn't think about her insecurities, of being neither beautiful nor elegant enough for him. No, she felt accepted in his arms, just the way she was- the not so perfect and not so elegant Shuurei.

Maybe this was the reason she did not want him to stop?

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The lack of air soon became impossible to ignore. Ryuuki unwillingly separated himself from her with a frustrated groan. He gazed at her in amazement. Her face was flushed and her breathing as fast as his own. Maybe it was just his imagination, but he caught a faint smile on her lips._ Those lips!_ He intended to kiss them all night. Finally he was able to see Shuurei after two long months and so close to him. He tightened his arms around her once more, as if he were afraid she would fade away like a cloud of smoke. Ryuuki leaned his forehead down to hers.

Although it was barely more than a whisper, his voice broke the silence stretching between them. "Shuurei, God I missed you. I've missed you so much." Ryuuki looked deeply into her brown eyes, seeing an expression of bewilderment and was it… entrancement?

_So she´s enjoying this as much as I am?_

He knew she never would reveal that to him with words. Ryuuki suppressed a grin to avoid unintentionally angering or scaring her away but he was happy to have that assurance. With it, there was no way he would let her to go now; his desire to hold and kiss her like this had only been ignited and was far from being fulfilled. He wondered if he could wish for even more than just kissing and hugging her. That thought thrilled him. Being the emperor- flattered and addressed only as that by most people- he could easily forget at times, that he was a man first.

A man with wishes, hopes and needs he always had to deny and bury underneath for the sake of being the emperor. Every time he saw Shuurei he was reminded, because she was the biggest part of those dreams. Foolish maybe, but loving her was what kept him going through the dragging, repetitive palace days. He did not lie when he said he could not be king for her sake anymore, but it was something that kept him going in his often lonely times.

Although he had many people around him, no matter if they were praising him for his effort or- more likely- cursing him for his faults as an inexperienced ruler, he felt lonely most of the time. Because even his friends saw him only as the king and not the person behind this duty. It was different with Shuurei though, but the times he could spend with her privately were always fleeting and rare since she realized her dream of becoming an official. A dream he made possible for her, because he wanted her to be happy even if that meant to sacrifice his own little piece of happiness.

He pushed these dark thoughts back into the deepest corner of his mind, because it didn't matter at all in this moment. Shuurei was here with him. There was no reason for Ryuuki not to taste more of the forbidden fruit she was. He was finally able to show her how deeply he adored her, without being pushed away. He would've been a fool not to seize this opportunity to make her realize that she was the only one for him, the only woman he ever would hold dear in his heart.

He began to softly kiss her face, which elicited a happy sigh out of her before he found his way back to her sweet soft lips, kissing her again. Chastely at first, as if he were still afraid she would still snap at him for acting like that.

_Old habits die hard,_ he mentally mused and was most happy as Shuurei responded. He deepened the kiss and his breath trembled of anticipation as she parted her lips to give him access to her mouth. Their tongues first met in an unassertive, sweet way and Ryuuki swore he never tasted anything more luscious in his life. He drew her closer and softly caressed her back with his hands without breaking their now intense kiss.

Shuurei was taken aback by all the feelings jolting through her body due to the way he was claiming her mouth. The way Ryuuki acted now was far from the childlike man, she used to know. No, he knew what he was doing here and she couldn't deny that she liked the way he was kissing and touching her. A muffled moan which unintentionally fled her lips was the best proof for this. She felt the strange desire to touch him in the same way. Her fingertips wandered his body instinctively, brushing over heated skin. Shyly at first, because she'd never touched a man like this before. She knew she was doing it right as he shivered at her feathery light touches.

Then they parted once more for air, not for long though. Ryuuki decided it was about time to distract himself with other, more delicate parts of Shuurei's slim body. He showered kisses over her face one more time, then nibbled lightly on her ear before planting gentle kisses along her neck. He paused his exploration at her collarbone, the tender flesh of which he softly suckled. Shuurei's breath hitched and she couldn't stop the loud moan that escaped her lips as she closed her eyes to give in to the sensual sensation. Her fingers clawed into the light fabric of his night gown while her head tilted back in delight. She was far beyond reasonable thinking by now, caught in a storm of emotions.

_Hmm, next is... _He smirked as his eyes settled on her chest. His hands continued to explore her body without any haste. And Shuurei was fully giving in now to his caressing. He had all night to discover every freckle, every curve of her skin- and he was determined to seize the whole time to please her, to show her his love for her. The alluring view of her small yet dainty breasts caught his eyes, soon followed by his hands which leisurely traced in that direction.

_If only I could get rid of her bothering robe,_ he thought and yearned to touch her soft skin without the troublesome garment but he decided to take one step after another, until she maybe would be ready for that. There was enough time after all and he didn't want to miss a single reaction. He smirked slightly as he noticed her aroused reaction to his touch through the fabric. He intensified his caresses a bit to strengthen he pleasure for her. She leaned her head onto his shoulder, tickling his skin with her fast breath.

Shuurei gave in to this overwhelming feeling but a strange longing had begun to burn between her legs. She pressed her tights together to make it go away however this action seemed only to intensify her craving and she caught herself wishing Ryuuki would touch her there. She wanted to feel him closer to her. Although she was tucked firmly in his arms, it seemed somehow not close enough anymore.

She leaned in to him and began to kiss his neck, the heat of his skin was smoldering on her lips. She never would have imagined that kissing would actually taste good, yet his skin did to her. A bit salty from his dampened hairline, yet mixed with with the smell of soap and the very own scent of his skin she failed to find a comparison to. Though she liked the way he smelled and tasted very much, it was a completely new and exciting experience for her senses. She trailed down the line of his neck with flighty kisses to his collarbone, while her not-so-shy-anymore hands brushed over his clothed, broad chest. She wanted to make to him feel good, the same way he was making her feel. Her actions elicited a deep, throaty groan from his lips.

He caught her mouth once more for a deep kiss while she let her fingertips slip under his garment, wandering on the bare skin from his flanks up to his shoulders. She traced smooth and hesitant lines over his skin; it didn't feel exactly soft under her hands but also not rough- it was just right to her. Ryuuki was trembling, shivering under her touches and broke their kiss for the urge to moan. He buried his face in the crook of her neck and breathing in her enticing scent, licking its sensitive skin. Oblivious to the world around him, he was smelling her, tasting her skin and feeling her hands run free on his body.

_Shuurei, Shuurei, Shuurei_, he repeated her name like a mantra in his head.

With only those few touches she was driving him crazy; she had that effect on him. Right now he'd forgotten about the endless loneliness, the years of craving of Shuurei, the sometimes very lively and graphic dreams he had of her. _This_ was better! He was utterly happy and wished the night would never end. He quickly got caught up in the desire to feel her closer, really close, right now. He fought against this need because he feared it was too much for her and would still scare her away in the end. Despite that, he was just a man after all- a man entangled in the arms of the woman he loved deeply and had yearned to feel around his neck like this for years.

Shuurei knew from Kouchou that men liked to kiss and... um, other things, but she never expected that a man could enjoy a few simple touches that much. She was amazed by his reactions. Her eyes widened as he laid her down on his bed in a swift movement and lightly hovered her with his body. She gasped as she noticed how he wrestled with the belt of her dress. Was she really willing to--?

She couldn't form an answer to that question. She just knew that she didn't want him to stop touching her, not when it felt so delightful. She felt a chilly breeze cross her bare skin as he finally set her dress loose, letting her shivering briefly. All her concerns were pushed back to the deepest corner of her mind as he kissed her softly again. The honey-blond strands of his hair fell loosely onto her neck and tickled her skin.

Ryuuki broke the kiss too soon for Shuurei and paused in his movements to enjoy observing her exposed body. Her delicate skin gleamed red-golden in the soft candlelight, making her even more ethereal to him. She didn't have the most womanly figure he had seen in his life, yet hers was the most beautiful to him. His eyes roved over her naked skin, never leaving; it was as if he wanted to memorize every inch of her body as an everlasting memory.

Shuurei felt his ardent gaze momentarily lingering on her chest and blushed, feeling awkward. _Why does he stare at me like that? _She knew she was rather flat-breasted in comparison with other women at her age, not like Jyuusan-hime. She huffed. That thought brought her momentarily back to her senses- until it was scattered to the four winds by an extensive wave of this warm, cozy and needy feeling rapidly building up inside her again. She felt his kisses, the hot wetness of his mouth enclosing one of her breasts- sucking and nibbling it carefully- while the sensitive flesh on the other side was leisurely stroke by his calloused yet very gentle fingertips. Another moan escaped her lips as she got lost in the sheer pleasure of the overwhelming feeling. Her hands restlessly flickered over his shoulder, tousling through his hair, gripping its silky strands.

She tasted sweeter than honey and wine, her enticingly soft skin and the fierce, passionate reactions of hers aroused him even more. Ryuuki let his hand wander to her legs, up her thighs, caressing softly the area around her center without touching her there. His need for her grew bigger from every second until it became almost unbearable. He wanted her so badly now, the pulsing between his legs was so intense it was nearly painful. He desisted from her breasts, kissing her neckline, before continuing his exploration with butterfly kisses on her flat belly.

His fingertips wandered. He discovered the gentle sensations of her inner thigh and the smoldering wetness of her folds. Her breath hitched, only to accelerate faster than before as she felt his touches. That strange longing turned into an aching and yet she felt all light-headed and blissful as his fingers started to rub that spot skillfully. She'd stroked that spot out of curiosity one night after Kouchou told her that was the point of woman's pleasure. It had felt good, yet it was nothing compared to the wonders of Ryuuki´s touches now. Shuurei whimpered in bliss, her whole body starting to feel light.

She wanted more, so she pressed herself closer to him and gasped as she felt his hardness, a clear sign of his own arousal. She felt herself losing control more and more as every wave brought her closer to the peak. Ryuuki muffled her moans with his kisses, mixing them with his own as her hips bucked up, colliding firmly against his eager crotch. He was utterly thrilled about the precious sight before his eyes as he continued to work his fingers slowly between her legs. Thrilled about her delighted face lost in pleasure, about the moans which came so carefree from her lips, he was most thrilled to be the first man ever to bestow her with such feelings, such lust.

He tasted the salt on her dampened skin as he licked down the line of her neck to her cleavage. With his other hand he groped around her back, pulling her firmly up to him and tucking her tightly to his chest. He needed to feel her close, wanted her so badly. Yet even this closeness wasn't enough for him anymore. He craved for more.

Ryuuki pulled away from her center to hold her with his other arm as well, ignoring her frustrated groan. Simultaneously he nibbled softly on her earlobe, causing her another shiver. An, "I want you" escaped unintentionally from his lips, groaning raspy in her ear. Although he hadn't meant to say it out loud, he hoped she'd get the meaning because he couldn't hold back much longer. Yet he wouldn't do anything Shuurei didn't want as well. Her response was immediate, though non-verbal. She wrapped her arms around him, pressing her waist close to his body and kissing him softly on the lips. Shuurei didn't care about right or wrong anymore, she just didn't want to stop now; didn't want to stop these feelings, which made her feel so light and warm at the same time. She couldn't say why but she felt at ease in his arms, happy actually. The closeness and the smoldering, comfortable heat of his body letting her heart eagerly flutter between its accelerated thumping.

That was all the answer he needed from her. Ryuuki intensified the kiss she had started while quickly disposing his night gown with a few proficient movements. The lightheaded feeling gripped Shuurei again as he started to fondle one of her breasts. She watched dazedly as he moved himself fully between her thighs now and positioned himself at her hips. Gently beginning to move. Her breath hitched as she felt a short, sharply pain down there, but was quickly distracted by Ryuuki's loving kiss and tight embrace. It took a few moments before this faint aching turned into something sensational, growing more so as he carefully started moving. She let out a loud moan due to the shuddering waves of lust which seemed to encircle her whole being now. Hands fluttered over the back of his body, desperately searching for something to grip, as she felt her whole body starting to tremble. She found hold on the sheets, clawing it between her fingers, before he took her tiny hand and gently entwined it in his own. She nuzzled her head into his chest, muffled screams of lust into it before he caught her mouth for a passionate, deep kiss.

Ryuuki had indulged with women before to cease his boredom and loneliness when he was still the neglected prince. Though when he became the emperor he stopped because he didn't want to become like his father, who slept with several women for the sole purpose to beget an heir to the throne. Those reckless "actions" of his father also indirectly caused the civil war years ago, during which the whole population of Saiunkoku had to suffer and still hadn't fully recovered yet. However making love to the one woman he deeply adored was totally different from his former experiences- so special. Being with Shuurei this way filled his heart with utter bliss. He rapidly moaned her name into the crook of her neck as he felt himself losing into sweet oblivion.

* * *

After the tension was finally released, he sank exhausted into her arms, listening to her labored breathing and her heartbeat which wasn't any less frantic than his. Both remained silent, simply enjoying the presence and cozy comfort of each other. Shuurei lazily ran her fingers through his long silky hair, while yawning wholeheartedly. She felt utterly exhausted but also kind of... peaceful. Yet somehow she couldn't shake off the feeling of embarrassment for doing all these things with Ryuuki, for going overboard like this. She was too tired now to worry about things like that though. For now she just wanted to put that in abeyance and find the needed sleep.

Ryuuki smiled at the fuzzy, warm feeling inside and doubted that he had ever felt happier in his life than right in that moment. He looked at her, caressed her cheek and kissed her lips very softly, murmuring "I love you" into it. Shuurei blushed and didn't answer his confession, trying to avoid his loving stare. She turned away from him to the side, tiredly hugging the silky blanket to her naked body. She fell almost instantly into a deep slumber. Ryuuki smiled before cuddling close to her back. He knew Shuurei wasn't a person for emotional words. It had always his role to swear undying love, though even without her words he was finally able to tell that she felt similarly for him. She still might be trying to hide it but her actions and behavior told him otherwise because the Shuurei he was holding in his arms right now, wasn't yelling at him or pushing him away as usual, no she was actually enjoying his nearness and even feeling comfortable in his arms.

What a wonderful revelation, he beamed on this thought, before his eyelids became heavy and he fell asleep.

At Shuurei´s side.


	4. An unexpected revelation

_**A/N: **__As promised the 4__th__ chapter right away after the third. Should make up the long wait, despite the fact that the third one is only half-beta-d. Anyway here we finally move on to some sort of story, lol. In this chapter we finally have a lot of appearances of the other lovely characters. And Seiran + Shuuei is always love. I had my fun writing those Shuuei parts back in the days xD Oh yes and Seiran is general in my story, must be the case I mixed something up as I have written it. However I kept it as such, so respect his authority....or so *shrugs*_

_**Thx to:**__ J Luc Pitard for beta reading this chapter._

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**Chapter 4: An unexpected revelation**

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It was early in the morning, even before the morning sun had fully gotten up, as Kou Shouka entered the the royal archive. However he wasn´t here to begin with his work. No, he was worried. Shuurei didn´t come home yesterday as she'd promised, so he assumed she stayed at the archive to put another all-nighter with her paperwork. He checked the desk she usually used, expecting to find her there, sleeping. Though the only thing he found was a massive pile of files scattered all over the table. Those papers undoubtedly belonged to her, he could clearly recognize her handwriting on those files.

Still no Shuurei at all.

His sorrows grew. It was so unlike her to leave such important documents lying around in the open. No, he knew his daughter and she never would do such a thing, except... if something had happened to her. Shouka shrugged. _No, it was still too early to panic, Shuurei could watch out for herself quite well. Still it would ease me to know if she´s alright_, he thought.

"And is she here?" Seiran´s worried voice pulled Shouka out of his thoughts.

"No. I thought so, but I had no luck. Though she was here," he said, pointing to the desk.

"I see. Well then I´ll go around searching the palace for her and ask Shuuei and Ensei for assistance," Seiran decided, thankful for the fact he was allowed to move everywhere around in the palace as the new general of the imperial army. "Master, would you mind staying here in case she comes back?"

Shouka pondered this option, before answering, "You´re probably right, you can move around more freely than me here anyway ...oh and I better take care of the documents too. Heaven forbid what would happen if those should land in the wrong hands. Make sure to inform me though, if you get any news."

"Of course," Seiran responded, before hastily leaving the archives to seek assistance from the others. Six pairs of eyes would see more than just two anyway.

"What? Hime-san is lost?" Ensei shouted out as he heard the news.

"Not exactly lost- rather missing. She has a good sense for direction unlike Kouyuu, you know?!" Ran Shuuei replied casually.

Seiran rolled his eyes. "This makes the situation even worse, don´t you think? Yes, hate me for being worried, but she would never abandon her work so carefree, with all the papers lying still around."

"Hehe. Seiran, don´t worry she´ll okay. Hime-san is smart, probably more than the three of us together," Ensei said.

"Yeah smarter than YOU, thats for sure," Seiran hissed and glared at Ensei. "Enough of our tea-party already, could we please go now and search for Shuurei?" With this, Seiran aimed for the next place where he thought Shuurei might be.

"Yes my general, at your duty," Shuuei sarcastically muttered, before following.

They went to different places, among them the bureau of government inspection, its small file archive and the royal garden, yet no luck. Seiran was frustrated and was not alone with it.

"Any ideas left where she could be? It´s not that I mind hunting after a woman, but it seems kind of pointless here in such a ridiculously huge place," Shuuei sighed. Ensei however went back to the archive once again to see if she has arrived there.

_Hmm, he has a point here_, Seiran thought and was while going through the options left, was suddenly struck by an idea. _Hold on a second, where the hell is my brother anyway? I haven´t seen Ryuuki around yet. What if my Lady...?_ he mentally shrugged. _Naah. Impossible. They haven´t seen each other for about two months._ This he knew for sure, because Ryuuki told... or more like whined about that fact to him constantly. Despite eliminating this possibility, he wordlessly took the direction to the kings chamber. There he could at least ask his brother if he has seen her, he decided.

Shuuei followed him rather puzzled, knowing the end of the path quite well and was asking himself quietly, why of all places, Shuurei should be there... _Oh._ He inwardly grinned, as that kind of idea flashed to his mind_. Maybe I only overestimate his highness by thinking whatever I´m thinking, but for sure its going to be interesting, either way._

Soon, but not soon enough though for the eager Shuuei, they arrived at their destination. The guards objected first but went immediately silent as they recognized Seiran. _Authority much, huh?_ Shuuei mused to himself.

_Hmm, all quiet here. Is my lazy brother still sleeping?_ Seiran thought. Not caring to knock, he leisurely opened the door a bit, enough to look through it... and froze at the sight.

"I. I... think I´ve... found h—her?" He blinked, obviously not believing his eyes.

Seiran saw his younger brother lying asleep in his bed- so far so fine- but what caused the rather eloquent and hard to shock man to go so stiff… was the small figure lying close, entangled in the king's arms, snoozing peacefully.

Shuurei.

And their clothes scattered around the floor was the evidence of what kind of meeting they actually had...

"Huh?" asked Shuuei, before squishing his head into the crack in the door. "Ohoooh. Looks like I didn't overestimate his majesty at all," he said quietly, a grin plastered all over his face. "About time huh?" He looked at Seiran, who was still trying to figure out what the heck happened. No, WHAT happened was pretty much clear... but still...

"Come on, give the two love birds some private space, would you?" Shuuei sighed over dramatically and shoved him out of the door, closing it quietly behind him. The guards looked confused at the two men. "Everything is fine, guys. We've just decided to come back later. The emperor is rather... busy now," he declared cheerfully. Seiran threw him a glare. "Oh Seiran, don´t tell me you're jealous after all?"

"No way. It's just unexpected. I´m... surprised," he confessed while they slowly departed the place.

* * *

Seiran knew about Ryuuki´s feelings for Shuurei too well, he has always been open about it -maybe too open- though this was how his little brother was: kind, righteous and when he loved someone he did it with all his heart. He smiled, remembering Ryuuki´s face as a six year old. Aside from his surprise about the sudden change of mind by Shuurei, he thought that if Ryuuki was the man she´d chosen for her life, she'd made a good choice and Seiran could definitely live with it. Ryuuki loved Shuurei more than anything, therefore she would always get treated with the highest respect and receive unconditional love. _My Lady also knows how to handle him perfectly_, he grinned at the picture coming to his mind, Shuurei scolding the mighty emperor of Saiunkoku like a nagging mother. Yeah, they complemented one another quite well, but was Shuurei really willing to become the empress? Knowing her so well, he wasn´t sure about it and only hoped his kind brother won´t get heart-broken again.

"Hime-san hasn´t come back to the archive, so have you still any ideas where she could be?" A breathless Ensei informed the two men. Seiran and Shuuei didn't say anything just looked quickly at each other.

"My, my, catch your breath, old man. Don´t run if you can´t handle it," Seiran sarcastically said.

"How can you stay so calm, Seiran? I mean what if we really can´t find her? What if something's happened to her?"

"No, she is fine, believe me", Shuuei responded amusedly.

"So the both of you have found her, actually? Or have you asked the emperor if she has seen her?" Ensei asked pointing to Ryuuki´s private rooms.

"Yes, we have," Shuuei continued.

"What, you've found her or asked him?"

"Both, actually", Shuuei replied dryly.

Seiran threw Shuuei another "shut up or die" stare , however he was elegantly ignored. This was just too much fun for the young man to let it pass. Ensei on the other hand looked rather puzzled at his both friends. What the hell did Shuuei mean with that?

"My, my a bit slow today, aren´t you Ensei? Well, lets say she stayed at his highness's place for, err... an important meeting," Shuuei chuckled. He knew he would probably get killed by the furious wraith of Seiran for saying this, but he thought it was definitely worth it.

"What- a meeting? Oooh." Ensei grinned as he finally realized the meaning. Seiran remained silent. He decided to punish Shuuei later for his inappropriate announcement, but first he had to figure out what exactly he should tell Shouka about it.

* * *

"Uuarghhh," yawned Shuurei loudly as she stretched her still tired limbs. The young women needed a moment to realize where she was as she opened her eyes. Then the realization hit her. Oh right, I came her because Ryuuki had a nightmare and then we... oh god. She blushed, while thinking about what occurred last night. She could still feel his hands and touch everywhere on her body and recognized that her face burned, probably now a deep crimson red. How could she went so overboard like this all of a sudden?! She'd never even kissed him back before and now suddenly all this happened at once.

Oh my god, she mentally panicked. Though she had to admit all these strange things Ryuuki had done to and with her felt so... so unexpectedly good. Was that the reason she didn't tell him to stop? Notwithstanding the sane part of her reluctantly pleaded with her to do so before she'd tuned that inner voice out, as she got swept away with passion, more quickly than she ever had imagined? Or was it because she felt so strangely at ease in his arms, enjoying his nearness? She had never acted so emotionally before, never let a person fully see her more vulnerable side, where she acted like what she actually was:

A woman.

Shuurei sat up in his bed, biting her lower lip and trying to find a reason why Ryuuki could crumble the walls she constantly had build up around her emotions so instantly down with just one kiss. She knew it was wrong what she had done with him- he was the emperor after all. Then, why didn't I tell him to stop? Her mind was searching for a reason to justify her behavior last night, yet she failed to find one. She only knew that her actions might have complicated things between the two. Last night blurred the lines between being his subordinate and the woman he obviously loved even more. Shuurei felt embarrassed and couldn't decide if it was a good thing or not that Ryuuki wasn't there. Maybe it was really for the better at this moment? She didn't know how to face him right now.

"Oh, you are awake? Fine," a cheerful female voice startled her out of her thoughts. She looked up to the sound just to find the face of Ran Jyuusan-princess smiling at her. "Good morning, or what's left of it. Sleep well?"

Shuurei´s eyes widened. Oh no! She's seen me here... naked... in his bed... 'Oh my god' was the only thought she was able to form in her panicked state.

Jyuusan-hime coolly overlooked the embarrassed Shuurei while saying, "I should tell you that his majesty- or Ryuuki for you-" She winked. "-is terribly sorry he can´t be with you now, but his presence were indispensable for an important matter of the court. Therefore, he asked me to take care of you," she finished.

Shuurei found finally her voice again "Ryuuki... did _WHAT?"_

"Don´t worry Shuurei, I´m the lady in waiting remember? Its my job to do the tasks the king gives to me discreetly and I´m good in it. So here, use these clothes and I also have boiled you some water, you might wanna clean yourself up before leaving."

"Yes... thanks," Shuurei said. Clearly puzzled, she was still sitting in bed.

"Oh, sorry! I've almost forgotten about this," Jyuusan-hime rustled quickly in her robe, pulled out a letter and handed it to Shuurei. "He thought it would be more personal this way."

Shuurei stared dumbfounded at the letter for a second before taking and reading it:

_My love,_

_I'm sorry for not being with you when you get awake- my job really can be annoying at times- however much I would like to now I can't forsake my duty, but I really hope to see you again later. Be nice to Jyuusan-hime, I have asked her for those things._

_I love you._

_-Anonymous_

Shuurei looked absent-mindlessly at the writing on the letter for a moment. That idiot, how could he do something so careless? What if this falls into the wrong hands? Okay, he hadn't written any name on it but it clearly showed the handwriting of the emperor. Every minister and official would be able to recognize it. She huffed angry before giving in to the temptation to read it one more time. On second thought, this is typically Ryuuki, so cute. She smiled to herself for a split second before grasping the meaning of her thoughts. Wait... did I think 'cute'??? She suppressed the urge to slap her forehead and just let out a mental sigh.

Jyuusan-hime grinned inwardly. She didn't miss the change in Shuurei´s facial expressions from irritation to bliss as she read the letter. It was there for a mere second but there was actually something like delight on that girl's face for sure.

"I'm glad for you both, really," she stated firmly.

"Huh why? I mean... its not like that, really," Shuurei awkwardly blurted out.

Jyuusan quirked an eyebrow. There she sits, naked in his bed and telling me "its not like that"? Yeah, right! Is that girl really so hopeless? For a moment she admired the kings persistence and willingness to suffer so long for the one he loved, although that one still seemed to deny her love for him after everything.

Hmm, time to test her a bit, she decided and sat down to her on the edge of the bed. "You know," Jyuusan-hime started, "I never actually intended to marry his majesty, not even after the agreement you both made."

Shuurei looked at her, surprised. "What?"

The Ran princess sighed. "As you might know its a promise I made to my older brother triplets, if they saved someone's live I would do anything they asked. So I´m repaying this debt by entering the imperial residence- and now as lady in waiting. Also, you probably remember that I love someone else anyway?"

Shuurei nodded. "You mean the one-eyed skinny man at the Kyuusai cove?"

"Yes. It may be foolish after all that happened there, but that's how love is- unreasonable. I still can't forget about him," Jyuusan- hime looked down, "I even thought about forsaking my family's wishes or the family itself to search for him."

It wasn't a lie she was telling Shuurei; in the lonely nights here in the palace she often thought about him, about the last time she saw Shiba Jun. It still hurt her to leave him behind like that and she wished she could search for him, to see him one more time. Though Jyuusan-hime didn't tell her that this was a forlorn, hopeless wish she had. Like Shuurei she was bound to her family name and duty, maybe even more than Shuurei. She was able to do how she please at least, living out her dream of being an official and she even held the heart of the emperor of Saiunkoku. Her brothers however would never give her so much freedom nor even the possibility of searching for the man who had fallen so low in the eyes of the Ran clan. No, she was bound to her promise, bound to the palace and maybe even bound to marry a man she didn't love. A so called political marriage, which would strengthen her family's position as the mightiest clan of Saiunkoku. Jyuusan-hime however, even though she did love her family, her brothers, would gladly pass on the opportunity of this marriage. She actually liked the emperor, he was a kind and righteous man, but neither of them would ever be able to be truly happy with the other. Under other circumstances maybe yes, but not when their hearts were already given away to others.

Shuurei was taken aback by her confession, though she had told her a bit about the man she loved before, she never expected that she would go to that extent for him. Love is.... unreasonable? Jyuusan-hime´s words echoed in her mind and Ryuuki´s mental picture appeared before her eyes, before she inwardly shrugged.

"Do you love him?" The Ran Princess asked.

"Huh?" said Shuurei, startled out of her thoughts.

"I mean the emperor, do you love him?" Jyuusan looked straight to the young woman's face.

Shuurei blinked and tried to avoid her eyes, the question hit her unprepared. "Err... what? N-n-n... no, I-I can't," she managed to bring out and felt her heart fluttering rashly. _Why is she asking something like that out of the blue? Loving him?_ Sure she felt at ease in his arms, that was a fact she couldn't deny anymore. But was that really... love? She noticed that her face began to burn again at that thoughts and she failed to calm the wild palpitation of her heart down.

"Aside that I can't marry him anyway," Shuurei added hastily.

"Why?" Jyuusan narrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

"I have other goals in life than only being a wife; I love my job. I worked so hard for my dream to become an official and I don´t want to give it up now. There is still so much I want to achieve," she declared.

Jyuusan-hime expected her to say something like that, yet this sounded more convincing in the past. Good. Same Shuurei-chan, always sturdy and unaware of certain things. She smiled to herself as she thought on the next sentence she would say to her. A sentence which would hopefully draw a reaction out of her.

"So then you are fine with me marrying the emperor?" She asked Shuurei with the most innocent, sweet undertone in her voice she was able to.

"Whaaat? But you just sai--" Shuurei blurted out, before quickly covering her mouth with one hand. Her eyes widened.

_Damn._

She was appalled by her immediate reaction and inwardly cursed her mouth, which was faster than her brain... again.

Oh what an interesting revelation we have here! Jyuusan-hime inwardly grinned. Well, congratulation your highness, it seems that she isn't so hopeless after all, she thought. Standing up from the bed she said, "Err my dear Shuurei, I´m sorry I have to go now. You may get ready if you don´t want to be late for your job- or should I say even more late. It was nice to see you again though." She waved to her and left nonchalantly.

"Oh my god, it's that late already?" The sun was already standing high up in the sky. She rushed out of bed and got ready using the water and clothes Jyuusan-hime prepared for her as fast as she could. She bound the mess of her hair loosely to a ponytail before running down the hall to the department of imperial investigation.

"Arhh! Ryuuki, someday this man will be my death," she angrily muttered, while she was hoping that she didn't get fired on the spot.

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"Oooh, if that´s not "the honorable" Lady Kou. Nice you that you still honor me with your presence after all," Ki Kouki sarcastically hissed as Shuurei entered his office, breathless.

"I'm... sor... sorry, sir. I over... over slept," she stammered, still trying to catch her breath from running.

"Hmm is that so? Well I don´t have use for officials who don't take their duty seriously." He narrowed his eyes, looking sharply at her.

"No- its not like that-...I-I..."

"Silence! I don´t care why you late, I don´t want to hear it." Before Shuurei could explain herself, Kouki hushed her rapidly. "More importantly, official Kou you were working on a case, right? So what are your results? Where are the documents? You do have the files I've given to you, right?"

_The documen--OH NO!!! I let them in the archive_. Shuurei´s eyes widened in panic, her mind raced.

_This is it_, she thought. _I'm done, now. I'm getting fired for sure_. She braced herself for the worst.

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_**A/N:** Cliffhanger much? Muahahaha...I love to be cruel at times, sorry xD. Next update to this will be when I get my 5th chapter back proofread. Hope you enjoyed the updates, though. Not much to say aside that *goes back to write her current, more darker story*  
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	5. Misfortune comes in pairs

**A/N:** _Because I´m such a good girl and my (new) beta reader is beyond awesomeness with his reliability, I can proudly present the never before published 5__th__ chapter of my fluffy RyuuXShuu saga xD And so close after the other releases, w00t. So hope you enjoy...and don´t be too lazy to type down your opinion to it afterwards, because reviews are much appreciated by and helpful for me. _

_**Disclaimer: **__Don´t worry, Sai Yukino-san I´m just playing with your characters, but I promise I will give them back once I´m finished here :D (Okay except for Ryuuki maybe ;P )  
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_**Acknowledgment:**__ Again many, many thanks to **J Luc Pitard **for beta-reading this chapter and that so fast.....and of course also to all the people who have read, reviewed and faved this (silly) story of mine. You guys ROCK ^__^_

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_**"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." **- John Lennon_

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**Chapter 5 : Misfortune comes in pairs**

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**"I'm waiting..." Kouki impatiently drummed his fingertips on his desk.

"Aha ha, sir. Of course I have the papers, wai--" Shuurei couldn't finished her sentence, as another person stormed into the office.

Kou Shouka. Her father. In his hands he held all the documents Shuurei had been working on.

"Oh my dear, you are so forgetful at times." He patted her on the back before turning to Kouki. "Sir, I'm terribly sorry for my sudden intrusion and apologize for my behavior, but since my daughter forgot to take the papers with her after she visited me for a cup of tea minutes ago, I thought I would bring them here," Shouka explained.

Shuurei didn't say anything; her mouth hung open in disbelief. Was her father actually backing her up?

Kouki raised an eyebrow. "Indeed a lovely scene. The father comes running to help his daughter. I'm quite touched. However, may I see the papers now?"

"Of course, sir," Shouka said and handed him the documents. "If you will excuse me, I have to go back to my work." He bowed and left with a quick glance at Shuurei.

"I see," Kouki said as he skimmed the documents. "Quite good hints of thoughts of yours, but it's not finished. How come?" Kouki quickly said, pointing to the files.

Shuurei's mind raced while it searched for a proper answer. What should she actually say to that? _'Excuse me Sir, I haven't finished my task because I've spent the night in bed with the emperor?_' _Oh sure, brilliant!_ The truth was so not an option here.

"Official Kou? You still owe me an answer and I don't like to repeat myself," he muttered angrily. Shuurei opened her mouth to reply, though before she could verbalize any words she was hushed by her chief again. "I don't care anymore. As I'd already thought, you won't hold up to my expectations - no sorry, actually you already have by failing - so I had Seiga working on this case too. Here is his finished work. Read it through and present it to the emperor. I promised to show him the results today. You may add a few thoughts from your own report, but don't overdo it."

Shuurei wavered between extreme frustration and anger. The last emotion held the bigger part of her that moment. "You did wh– " She stopped herself and started over more calmly.

"Sir, why did you do this? Did I even have a chance? You planned on doing that from the start, right? It's not fair," she said with a bitter undertone, unable to swallow all of her frustration.

"Life is rarely fair, my lady. Especially in the world of politics. Its nothing personal though, it's just that I'm uncomfortable trusting such an important task to a rookie. You left the documents lying around in the archives, unwatched and forgotten. And I don't care if your father was present at the time. Actually, your father had the chance to read them now because of you. Do the words '_Confidential files'_ have any meaning to you, official Kou?" he scolded her with all his anger. "Take that report and leave. I expect to hear your report about the meeting with his highness later on. Don't fail again, you understand?!" The chief of imperial investigation demanded.

"Yes, sir," she quietly answered. If Shuurei ever had any confidence in her work, her chief had successful smashed it by now. Maybe only temporarily, but that was enough. Shuurei couldn't decide what was worst, that she had been late, this self-esteem crushing scolding, the way her chief distrusted her or that she now had to present SEIGA's report to the emperor. Ryuuki. Suddenly her anger centered on one man- if it wasn't for him, none of this would have happened. _Oh you wait,Ryuuki_, she thought, _I'll give you a piece of my mind._ She balled her fist behind her back.

The young woman took the report out of her chief's hand and quickly left his office, trying to suppress her anger until she was out of his sight.

She was furious, partly at herself, but mostly at the person who ruled the country.

Ryuuki.

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"Aaargh, that's wrong again! Your Majesty, could you please take your work more seriously?" Kouyuu was annoyed. Several times now that happily grinning idiot of an emperor had made the stupidest mistakes on his paperwork or he simply didn't listen to what Kouyuu told him. He was here to help the emperor today, since Yuushun had his free day.

"Hmm, Kouyuu? Did you say something? Sorry, we didn't hear you." Ryuuki smiled innocently, managing to look anything but regal as he sat behind his desk.

There we go again! Kouyuu was about to explode of anger.

"Don´t forget to breathe my friend or you will die of suffocation. Oh well, that look your face is already veeery red," Shuuei mentioned teasingly.

"Aaaargh! Shut up, Shuuei. Why are you here anyway?"

"Why shouldn't he be here, Kouyuu?" Ryuuki asked. "It's a wonderful day. Isn't it a wonderful day, Shuuei?" He beamed at the man.

"Yes my lord, it is indeed," Shuuei replied, amused at this overly happy behavior of his emperor. It entertained him even more to see that Kouyuu failed to find a reason for it and began to despair of this smitten man of a ruler.

Kouyuu buried his face in one hand and tried to stay calm. He was sure that the stupid emperor with this ridiculously good mood would have even submitted an order of execution with, "Aaah its such a beautiful day" or even worse, would have set a mass murderer loose with the words, "Be a good boy from now on, okaaay?" He silently thanked heaven that today there weren't any such processes. Still the behavior of the emperor was nothing if not annoying and very scary.

Seiran leaned casually on the wall and watched this entertaining spectacle from the other side of the room. Once again his brother has made an idiot out of himself. He'd stopped counting how many times it was by now. The former prince knew well why Ryuuki was in such delighted mood, probably even too well. _Ahh, the miracles of love, huh?_ He smirked. If he didn't know his brother better and only judged his work by today he would've been afraid for the future of Saiunkoku. Instead Seiran was happy for his brother, finally he wasn't alone anymore.

Ryuuki knew he'd better listen to the hard working and, today, strangely patient Kouyuu, but he couldn't help it. His mind was too occupied with one thought- Shuurei. He regretted that he had to leave her alone in his room for work.

In _his_ room.

The young emperor grinned to himself like an idiot. He had often daydreamed of Shuurei before, when the paperwork became too repetitive for him, but this time it was different. It was more intense. This time he did it with the assurance that Shuurei loved him too. It was such a delightful feeling not only to love but also to be loved back. He sighed happily. _I have to see her as soon as possible_, Ryuuki decided while he once again failed to follow Kouyuu´s speech.

Suddenly the door opened and a guard came in, bowed down as he announced, "Your majesty I beg you to excuse the disturbance, but official Kou is here and requests to be received in audience."

The young king looked up, nodding wordlessly to the guard to give him permission to let the visitor in.

Shuuei grinned to himself, _if this is the official Kou I think it is, it's going to be interesting,_ he mused. _There was a very good chance it would be the lovely one of the few Kou officials around_. Shuuei stared in eager anticipation at the door. It opened once more and as expected, Shuurei came in. _Bingo! I´m really glad to have decided to spend my free time here, otherwise I would have missed a very amusing official meeting._ He chuckled to himself.

She wore a new set of clothes, had her hair fixed and carried a pile of paper in her hands. And, everyone -except for Ryuuki who was too happy with just seeing her- could tell she was in a really awful mood.

"Shuu--", Ryuuki blurted out gleefully but he was silenced by her words before even finishing her name.

"Your majesty, thank you for welcoming me. I, Kou Shuurei, official of the section of Government Inspection, am here to present you the results of our research of the defalcation of tax in the financial department." She remained in her bow; one of her eyebrows twitched.

_Ooooh... _Ryuuki pouted inwardly. _She's here for business. No fun._

He took a deep breath, tried to suppress all of his feelings before he spoke. "You may raise yourself, official Kou. Chief Ki Kouki informed us that there would be results announced today," he said in his most majestic voice.

Seiran didn't know why his Lady was so extraordinarily angry but her intensity even gave him- the former ruthless prince of Saiunkoku- goosebumps. He wasn't sure if Ryuuki would come out of it alive either. _Well, we'll see,_ he thought, somewhat amused.

Shuurei looked up and their eyes met. Ryuuki was startled by what he saw. She looked sharply at him and wait... was that _anger_ in her eyes?? The young king was thoroughly perplexed. Yes, indeed he could feel a wave of furious wrath coming directly to him from her... but why? He blinked before continuing, "Official Kou, we are curious to hear the conclusion of your investigation."

"Of course, your highness. It's detailed in this written report but we can undoubtedly say the source of this defalcation is found in person of official Luan, as his majesty can clearly see here." She stepped nearer and handed the documents to him. As Ryuuki took them, he lightly brushed her hand for a split second, though it was enough time to send an intense electric shock through Shuurei's system. She shook herself mentally, frustrated.

"Ah, we see," he said as he looked through the report, though not fully able to ignore the lovely presence of his subordinate who stood next to him. "General Shi," Ryuuki looked to his brother who nodded and came to the desk. "Is official Luan still present at this time?"

"You want me to arrest him, your highness?" Seiran asked.

"No, not yet. We still have to establish the process, but watch him closely starting tomorrow. If he makes any unnecessary moves--"

"Oh, we'll make sure he won't, your majesty. We'll follow his steps inconspicuously," Shuuei said and bowed to him gracefully. Seiran threw him a look for interrupting the king, but followed his example, bowing to Ryuuki as well.

"Good work, official Kou," Ryuuki said and looked to her.

"I'm honored but your highness praises me too much for this. It's not my work. It's my esteemed colleague, Seiga's. I'm just here to hand over the report and tell your majesty about the conclusion of the investigation. Thus I will deliver your highness's kind regards to my partner in government inspections the next time I see him." Shuurei's eye twitched while she formally stated this sentences. She felt her anger increasing once more. The deridingly grinning face of Seiga appeared before her eyes and made her feel sick. Another thought was adding even more to the already unpleasant feeling Shuurei held inside. _Oh great, here I stay in front of the emperor and have to be humble when I would love to give Ryuuki a my piece of mind! How infuriating!_

She decided it would be better if she left quickly, otherwise she knew that she wouldn't been able to keep up the charade of "official Kou." In her current state she feared her tongue could slip and she'd say something very inappropriate to him, as his official.

"If that is all, may I ask his majesty, if it would not be impolite, for me to leave now." She bowed low to him and hoped he would finally release her from this humiliating situation.

Ryuuki was surprised. _Wasn't she the one working on this case?_ No, he was almost sure she was, but that report was written and signed by Seiga, that idiot. A capable one but still an idiot. Was this the reason Shuurei was angry? However why was she secretly glaring, as if she wanted to kill me? His surprise morphed into confusion, while his mind wandered searching for a reason. Being sure both of them very much enjoyed what they'd done, he found none. Then, he remembered that Shuurei still stood in front of him as a supplicant, waiting for his response...which would make her even more mad... Damn!

"We are sorry, official Kou. We were thinking and should not have left you waiting so long for our answer. Of course you are allowed to leave now." Oh great. I messed up again. Ryuuki felt the sudden urge to hit himself. If she wasn't angry at him before she would bear a grudge now for sure.

"Your highness," she muttered before she quickly turned around, practically storming out of his office; leaving Kouyuu and the other men staring after her in bewilderment.

"Your majesty? You didn't do anything to Shuurei-dono, that made her THAT furious, did you?" Shuuei asked innocently. Much to his amusement, the emperor blushed lightly at his question.

"Not that we know of." He sighed. Anyway, Ryuuki decided, whatever it was that caused her bad mood, he'd make sure to make up for it later. _Yeah, that's quite the idea,_ he thought, self-content with this solution and around his lips a smile curved before he went on with his paperwork.

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As soon as Shuurei was out of the king's office, she came to her senses and thus stopped her storming walk. The young woman, still shivering from all the anger and frustration this meeting and the previous day in general caused her, leaned on a wall and took a deep breath._ Just great. Really, can this day become any more disastrous? And I still have to write the full report,_ she sighed. _No way I'll be able to concentrate on it, not while being this mad._ She decided to take a little break before going on with her work.

After the refreshing impact of washing her face with cold water in the restroom and taking a longer walk in the garden to sort out her thoughts, she felt prepared enough to go on with writing the report. On her way back, Shuurei's path leaded her past the archive. _Wait, I really should go in and thank my dad for backing me up earlier on._ She blushed lightly from embarrassment. _Without him helping me, I would have been fired_, she thought, while she slowly walked through the corridors of the royal archives.

"Father, I wanted to say th--", she nearly ran into a pile of books as she saw the person sitting there next to the table.

_Ryuuki._

"Shuuuureeeeei," he called out to her in his overly happy voice, smiling wholeheartedly. _Seems like Lady Luck is on my side today, being able to see her so soon again and not as the emperor, huh?_

_NOO!!! WHY? OF. ALL. PEOPLE????_ Those words boldly hammered in her head, before she let out an angry, "What are you doing here, Ryuuki?" She glared at him peeved, yet her heart beat vigorously. It was her first meeting with him- not as the emperor, but as Ryuuki- since last night. Though she had waited for this opportunity to give him her piece of mind, she felt nervous now and there was another feeling boiling up. Bad temper, a really bad temper.

"Oh, that's rude. We are just taking a break and enjoying Kou-sama´s tea," he pouted. "And we are really glad to see you here again, because we don't like speaking formally with Shuurei." He beamed happily.

She blinked. Enjoying her father's tea?! That utterly bitter breed of beverage? What's wrong with him? His bubbly behavior really ticked her off. She felt her temper rising further; her whole body went tense with anger.

"Oh, Shuurei, it's nice to see you," her father greeted her and with one look at her face, he asked, "Are you okay?"

"Yes, Shuurei. You look... worried," Ryuuki chipped in, trying to avoid the word 'mad.'

That pulled the trigger for her. "You have to speak, Ryuuki? You have no idea how embarrassing that meeting was for me! I had to present Seiga´s documents to you because mine weren't finished- at all! My father had to back me up because I totally forgot about the files here in the archive and then I got scolded in a terrible way because of it and you are to blame for all of this. You are messing up my work! Don't you see that?!" She burst out with her full wrath, breathing and shaking heavily.

Ryuuki stared at her open-mouthed. So this was the reason for her furious behavior during the official meeting? Well, at least he finally knew. "Shuurei got scolded? By whom?" he looked at Shouka, who stood next to them, quietly observing this strange scenario.

"I don't know exactly, Lord Ryuuki, but I'd guess she meant your minister, Ki Kouki. He was in an extraordinarily bad mood when I was there to hand her files over," he stated.

"Ki Kouki, the chief of section of Government inspection, hmm?" he mumbled. He was a good minister, though always a bit too rude to the officials under him. He felt sorry for Shuurei yet that wasn't something he could change. More important now was to calm her down again, to ease her infuriated mind. Knowing her and her temper so well, he knew it would been a difficult task for him. He inwardly weighed her arguments or, better said, the things she'd yelled at him.

Yes, it was true that he kept her away from work last night- he fought the butterflies in his stomach at the mere thought of it- but what happened only occurred because she wanted him too and had truly enjoyed what they had done. Ryuuki decided there was nothing he should feel sorry for.

He stood up from his place and looked her closely in the eyes . "Listen, we...," He paused and decided to drop the royal speech with her, "I'm sorry this all happened to you and that Shuurei had a terrible day, but..." He lowered his voice. "I'm not sorry for the other part," he softly said to her, brushing her shoulder lightly.

She gasped at the slight contact. For a second she was lost in his loving gaze, before she mentally shook herself, remembering she had actually screamed at him moments ago. Her mood instantly shifted from delighted to annoyed again. _Arghh, how can he act so carefree and talk to me about those things when my father is around?! _She narrowed her eyes, staring back in anger to his gentle expression. She would not give in, not now.

Kou Shouka observed the whole scene quite amusedly. It just took him two quick glances at Ryuuki and back to Shuurei to know what was different this time. He was quite a good observer and had a quick mind so it was no surprise he noticed the change in his daughter's behavior. Although she tried to hide it, he knew Shuurei well enough to tell that she acted differently toward Ryuuki, more emotionally. Probably in love? He couldn't say this for sure, seeing as the shift in Shuurei's emotions had been short.

Then all of a sudden Seiran's words played once again in Shouka's mind, "Shuurei has met up with the emperor and is fine." This explanation finally started to make sense to him. That was where she spent the night, at his majesty Ryuuki's side. This would also explain why Shuurei acted so differently toward him now. Shouka was astonished!

"Argh! You don't understand, do you? I've got to get out of here, sorry Father," she yelled before turning around to storm out of the archives as fast as possible. Ryuuki stared dumbfounded after her for a moment. He knew if he would let Shuurei walk out of this door now, he might lose her... again. _Not for the world will I let this happen,_ he told himself resolutely and rushed after her.

Shuurei was almost to the outer door when she was stopped dead in her tracks and her heart clenched for a second, before it began to race faster and faster. She felt a comfortable warmth enclosing her whole body.

Ryuuki embraced her from behind, holding her close to him. He knew it was a foolish thing to do, here in the open, in the archives but he didn't care about it at all in that moment.

"Ryu... uki?" she whispered in astonishment and fought against feeling the strange sense of security in his arms. This feeling utterly confused Shuurei. Wasn't she so angry at him before? Now his warmth started to make her feel dizzy.

"Let go," she managed to bring out, more loudly than when she was calling out his name in surprise. Her heart was thumping loudly and she cursed herself that he was probably able to feel it while holding her so close. She was baffled by the carelessness he again showed. Compared to recklessly hugging her in the archive, leaving her the handwritten letter before was nothing. Indeed, it left her unable to do anything but to form one thought:

_Idiot._

"Don't… go," he whispered so quietly in Shuurei's ear, that she lost the words.

"Huh?" She turned around as Ryuuki released her a bit. When she sought his eyes there was such a sad expression in it. But why?! She failed to find a reason for it.

Before she could think about it or avert her gaze from him, he leaned close to her ear once more, whispering this time clearly audible for her, "Shuurei, meet me after sunset at our usual place. I'll be waiting there." He fully released her this time, saying loudly, "Thank you for the tea, Kou-sama." And walked out the door.

Shuurei was left behind, perplexed and her face felt like it was burning. _What was that now?_ Her skin still tickled in the places Ryuuki's warm breath had touched._ Why should I want to meet him later? What is he thinking?_ She shrugged. _No, I shouldn't think about something like that. I still have a report to write,_ she decided. She closed her eyes and tried to reassure her racing heart, before beginning with her actual work.

Ryuuki stopped shortly. He allowed himself to take a deep breath while thinking, _that was close and quite daring of me saying that to her in the end. I don't know if she´ll show up,_ he sighed. Though judging by her reactions, the young king was almost sure Shuurei would be there. He smiled while he walked through the halls back to his office.

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_**A/N:** __Wanna haaaaave Ryuuki *_* He's so lovely. Anyway, that´s all folks...for now. But I´m truly astonished what for an amazingly job my BR has made with this chapter. I know the previous version (duh xD) and it hasn´t been changed that much but it makes it indeed to a far better read, so thx again *__* However next chapter: Pure RyuuXShuu-chappie and one of my faves within this story,_ you'll see why. As always comments/reviews are looooovee ^^


	6. Under the surface

**A/N: **_This chapters motto: Life is what happens to you while you are busy making other plans- you´ll see why xD Pure ShuuXRyuu chapter because they need to err ...talk. This chapter is a rewrite of the original chapter btw -cuz it sucked that´s why I wrote it anew. So the style will most likely differ from the other chapters. (not much but still) Due to its importance for the story and...other things (hehehe) it became a very long chapter. (7500 words) See my notes at the end for further explanation of it as well. Anyway, enough of my rambling now, have fun._

**_Disclaimer: _**_It hasn´t cease to apply until now, so yeah..._

_**Again so much thx and greeting to **J Luc Pitard, who continues to be the best beta-reader, a girl can wish for ^^  
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_**_"Within you I lose myself. Without you I find myself wanting to become lost again."_ **_--Unknown_

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**Chapter 6: Under the surface**

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The sun was almost down and it was already a bit dark as Shuurei left Ki Kouki´s office, where she'd delivered her report about her meeting with the emperor. ._..Ryuuki... _Suddenly, the words he'd whispered echoed in her mind:

"_Meet me after sunset at our usual place, I´ll be waiting there."_

Not that she'd ever forgotten them while sitting at her desk, doing paperwork. No, the young women found herself staring out of the window from time to time and asking herself when the sun would finally go down. Only to be irked by herself in another moment for thinking on something trivial like that when she had work to do.

Her encounter with Ryuuki in the archives earlier was still confusing and angering her as well. How could he hug her all of a sudden? What if someone saw them? _Argh, it was already enough that my father saw __**that**__, _she huffed. _Irr__esponsible idiot! _

Shuurei stepped angrily down the hall until she stood at the entrance of the garden. As she saw the sakura trees from afar, she felt her temper rising once more in counterpoint to her loudly thumping heart. _Our usual place, huh?_ She didn't know what she was actually planning to do there or what to say to him when meeting him in private.

_In private?_ She stopped in her tracks, eyes widening in realization. Ryuuki and she would be there alone. She gulped. All of her courage to face him, to give him a piece of her mind reduced rapidly to a minimum. She wavered. On the one hand, she could go there and give him what he really wanted. On the other she knew that if she didn't face him now, the situation would become a lot worse than it already was. She had to quit it quickly and cleanly, telling him that it was a mistake. Shuurei was his subordinate after all and her behavior last night was more than inappropriate. She couldn't let it happen again or all meetings with him -official or not- would be awkward.

_Quit it. _She noticed a faint aching in her chest at that thought but shoved it aside as soon as she recognized it. A gust of fresh wind and the rustling of branches pulled her out of her thoughts and she realized that she had already arrived at the appointed destination. She looked up through the bare branches of the sakura trees and saw how lightly they moved in the wind, gleaming red-golden through the light of dusk.

Shuurei took a deep breath but that didn't help to reassure her heart which was beating out of her chest. She knew she would meet Ryuuki here in a few minutes and began to regret her decision again to come. Though since she _was_ here now, those doubts weren't helpful in the slightest. She sighed resignedly and searched the trees trying to find a tall, blond haired man dressed in purple. Ryuuki. After a moment of searching Shuurei stepped past two trees but still couldn't find him. Suddenly she was pulled by her wrist and whirled around to land in well known arms.

"Shuurei, we--I feared you wouldn't come. So I'm really glad you're here," Ryuuki whispered softly in her ear. He intensified his embrace, leaving a compressed and utterly surprised Shuurei captured in his arms. Her arms hung loosely down her sides. Her breathing was fast and unsteady while her eyes fixed on a point behind him. Ryuuki could feel her heart thumping wildly against his chest. Her very own, enticing, mixed smell of roses and soap filled the air and surrounded his senses.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," he whispered apologetically in her ear. The tickling of his warm breath on the shell sent a heavy shiver down her spine, yet also abated the shock she felt at his sudden appearance. Slowly, Shuurei began to move, putting her arms up to get out of his crushing embrace, even if just a little. She fought against his chest and glared peevishly at him until he finally released her. Seeing how much Shuurei's temper had risen in a few seconds, Ryuuki decided that doing so would be better for his health.

"Ryuuki," she breathed, her cheeks flushed. "Would you please stop hugging me every time you see me?! Think of the people!"

"What people?" he asked in a perplexed voice as he looked around. As far his eyes could see in the dim light, he saw nobody. "We're alone here, Shuurei," he stated with a smile and reached out to touch her adorable, flushed cheek. But as soon as he recognized the infuriated expression in her face, he instinctively pulled his fingers back again. _What have I done wrong this time? _ He'd already apologized for scaring her, so he couldn't understand her anger.

"Ahh, that's not what I meant," she answered, annoyed. Yet, having it pointed out by Ryuuki- that they were in fact, all alone here- made her feel all fidgety. She shook herself mentally to get rid of that feeling before she added, "As an emperor, you... you... can't run around hugging people."

_Ugh, what the heck am I saying here? _She felt awkward and cursed her nervous mind which brought such nonsense to her tongue.

Ryuuki didn't understand a thing of what she was saying at the moment. Why should he want to hug people? Then he sighed. "Shuurei, I don´t run around and hug people. I just want to hug--," he paused to close the gap between them. Then he lightly groped around her waist with one of his hands, looking gently into her still exasperated, narrowed eyes. "…._you." _He nearly whispered the last word and enjoyed the immediate shift in Shuurei's face. Her stern face softened all a sudden. Her eyes were captivated by his, their expression soft and without a hint of anger. Shuurei's heart skipped a beat as she heard those words. She felt herself lost in those deep auburn eyes of his again and his touch felt like it was burning on her waist. She closed her eyes to avert them from his and shook her head rapidly to get rid of the commotion she felt inside.

"St-st-stop doing that," she said confused, her face deeply blushed.

"I haven't done anything," Ryuuki protested and pouted as she pulled his hand away from her waist.

Shuurei felt her temper rise again. A massive feeling of annoyance jolted through her system and her body went rigid. So many things ticked her off! Mostly, she was annoyed with herself, that she couldn't remember the words that had played through her mind so many times before their meeting. Yet, now standing right in front of him, she couldn't find any of the words. Her mind was totally blank and it was as if her tongue and brain couldn't connect the way they were supposed to. It was unnerving. What also annoyed her was that Ryuuki´s behavior was unchanged from earlier, still bold and irresponsible. Why did she even come here? It was clearly a mistake. She glared at him.

"Oh great, this is exactly what I need after a miserable day. Pointless arguments. I came here to talk but I see its useless, with you behaving like that." With that, she turned around to leave. Ryuuki needed a moment to realize what was going on, but then he immediately reached out for her sleeves and held her back. Shuurei´s brown eyes widened in shock and she stared back at him, a fiery glint of rage evident.

_I mustn't let her get away now_. Ryuuki knew this situation, it was similar to the one in the archives earlier. He was not stupid and knew her well enough to know why she reacted like that. Shuurei was a tough, strong woman when it came to business and didn't fear to face, hours-long negotiations with men twice as tall as her. But when she had to face emotional issues concerning her personally, she tended to prefer not dealing for as long as possible. Or to turn around and run away from it.

Just like now.

Ryuuki still held her by her sleeve, refusing to let her go. He knew with her mood at the moment that this was a dangerous thing to do, but there was no other way. They really needed to talk.

"Don´t leave, please. I'll behave, I swear. You came here to talk, right? How about taking a walk, it's a wonderful clear night after all," he tried to convince her and gave her a smile. Shuurei still looked at him undecided, as if weighing the options given to her.

"Come on. It´s just a walk, Shuurei," the young emperor added quickly as he saw her hesitation.

Shuurei sighed in resignation but still watched him mistrustfully. "Okay then. I'll stay. We really need to-- Ryuuki! My hand!" she exclaimed appalled as he took her hand lightly in his. A faint stain of red was apparent on her face.

"Don´t worry, we _are_ alone here. I just want to make sure that you don´t run away," Ryuuki answered quietly. It wasn't a lie he was telling her. He really was afraid that she might run away this anytime, but he also needed to stay in contact with her. _Physically. _Not because it gave him a warm fuzzy feeling inside to hold her hand -which it actually did- no, because it might bestow _her_ with the _same_ feeling. Ryuuki decided that Shuurei had to become aware of the things she locked up deep inside her. He planned to bring that to the surface. It was like playing with fire and he might get burned, but he thought it was worth the try. Plus, with their current situation, there was nothing to lose anymore. _Who am I fooling? There is so much to lose, _he thought bitterly. If Ryuuki was honest to himself, tonight's talk was deciding his future with Shuurei,- if there was one- and not the gamble he'd made with her a little while ago.

Shuurei followed, a bit unwillingly by his side and opened her mouth to counter something in his somewhat perkily worded sentence, but quickly decided it wasn't worth the commotion. _As if I ever would ever run away._ _Oh, just wait and see, Ryuuki, _she huffed. After all, it was just a walk so that they could talk in private and where she could tell him that it all-- _Wait __why does my hand feel so warm? _Puzzled, she looked down to her hand which was entwined with Ryuuki's now. She hadn't noticed that "improvement" until her skin actually felt hot in his hands and also... _good?_ This slight contact had a strangely soothing effect on her nervous mind and kept her somehow stable. She didn't understood the reason but concluded to leave it at that, for now. After all he hadn't made any further move, just walked peacefully at her side through the palace garden.

It was indeed a beautiful evening with a light, not chilly breeze gusting through the air. The remaining light of the nearly fully sunken sun still illumined all in a faint red light, mixed with the soft white glow of the lanterns from afar made for a peaceful picture. Their walk went slowly on, with neither of them saying a word. They passed the imperial pond, to the hidden part of the palace garden, the place where Ryuuki sought solace or comfort when he needed time for himself.

Shuurei didn't know how to start, how to break that awkward silence between them. Her hand still rested in his and that made her heart flutter unsteadily. Somehow it suddenly seemed to her that the air wasn't that light anymore. It had become rather thick and made breathing harder. Her gaze fell nervously over to Ryuuki but he didn't seem to have recognized it. His eyes continued to wander absentmindedly over the beautiful view of the evening scenery, without regard for her company. Inwardly, she wondered why the air felt so tense. It was just a walk after all. Nothing more.

Ryuuki's mind circled back and forth. _Where to start? _He couldn't find the right words, didn't know what he should say to her. He could clearly feel how the immense tension grew between them. A fleeting glance fell on their entwined hands and he was sure that this was the origin. Just holding hands with her was now enough that a raw storm of emotions swept over him. He couldn't hinder all of the different kinds of emotions he'd previously kept under the surface as they arose at once and surrounded his senses. His body tingled with the prickling feeling inside of him, the electrifying mood between them made his breath hitch briefly before it sped slightly up. His desire to tuck her into his arms, to embrace her tightly became harder to suppress, but in the corner of his mind there was also fear. He feared losing her even more after having held her so close. He didn't wanted to be all alone again, not after he'd finally found happiness in her arms.

Ryuuki knew that he had to accept her choice, following her words, but still he could try to make her see that last night was anything but a mistake. Not when she was feeling the same for him. With a slight smile he glanced over to Shuurei, noticing the nervous twitch in the corner of her mouth, her ragged breathing and how she clawed her finger in his. She was definitely acting different compared to other times, whether out of nervousness or for reasons beyond that, he couldn't say for sure.

Shuurei felt his stare lasting on her and her heart sped up to a humming beat. _Say something, say something, _she scold herself mentally. The tension became unbearable.

"Ryuuki, I-I..." Shuurei stammered and broke the long silence. Ryuuki stopped and turned to her, showing he would listen. His hand was not leaving hers, rather he clung to this contact, to feel her.

She sighed. Atypical for her, she'd said the first thing rushing through her mind, anything to end this agonizing silence between them. That first thing was his name. She was searching for words to continue yet struggled with it. They now stood in between two large plum trees, the imperial pond not far from there, still in sight.

"Yes, Shuurei?" Although afraid of her following words he motivated her to go on. He almost knew- could feel- what she would saying next.

Shuurei looked up to him, biting her lip and still searched for proper words. "Ryuuki, last night...," she started but didn't get any further because he hushed her with his palm.

He frowned. "I don't want to hear this." Ryuuki immediately felt how she stiffened up, how her grip around his fingers had hardened, squeezing his hand tightly. She was angry again.

"Whaat?" she growled.

"You are going to tell me that last night was a mistake and that you regret that it has happened. I just don't want to hear those words from your lips, that's why I hushed you. Sorry about that."

"What? How could you... How did you possibly know?" she asked in bewilderment, her eyes wide open. Yet he felt her relaxing again, at least a bit.

"Because I know you, Shuurei. I know you very well." He weighed the next sentence, knowing its impact, the danger that she would snap at him and run away after it. "And I also know that just like me...." He stepped closer and looked her deeply in the eyes before he went on, "You also enjoyed what we've done. Even though you might have been caught up in the moment, you _were_ enjoying it. So don't say you regret it." He lightly caressed her cheek. His gaze still lingered on her.

Shuurei stared at him in disbelief. _What was that? How could he? _Her blood started to boil but as the pictures of last night appeared before her eyes, the anger immediately changed to feelings of ...shame? She couldn't exactly categorize it but embarrassment was one of those, for sure. Mostly because she had indeed enjoyed those strange feelings in his arms... and his kisses. If she was honest to herself, Ryuuki was right with what he was saying. But not for the world would she ever tell him that though.

She pursed her lips, glaring defiantly at him, "But it was still a mistake."

Ryuuki needed to suppress a smirk, because she had _indirectly_ agreed to his point. This was not the time to amuse himself with such trivial matters though, so he concentrated on her again. _Still an interesting revelation..._

"I mean, I'm your subordinate; you're the emperor. I can't be with you. Not like that. That was an irresponsible thing to do." She looked away. Her face was burning while talking about those _things._

"Irresponsible? Yes maybe it was, but love is rarely reasonable. You can't waver that with arguments, it just happens." He paused for what seemed an eternity for Shuurei before he added, "...And I _love_ _**you**__._"

He spoke the last sentence very carefully word for word, hoping it would reach her heart this time, after the countless times he had sworn his love for her. Never meant he it more than in that moment. He saw her trying to take it in. Gasping, her face wore an expression of bewilderment and awe. Ryuuki stepped closer, which made her to take a few steps back, trying to keep some distance from him.

"No. You... you can't – You... you are the emperor."

Shuurei cursed herself for talking such nonsense, but she was too appalled by the heavy turmoil she felt inside at his words and his intense gaze into her eyes. Ryuuki had confessed so many times over the years that Shuurei should be used by hearing it now. This time it hit her hard and unprepared. As if those little words got under her skin... "No," she repeated one more time, very quietly. _Damn, where has all my confidence gone all the sudden?_ The confidence to yell at Ryuuki, properly argue with him and shrug him off in the end? She had done it so many times before, why not now? Shuurei failed to comprehend the reason, she only felt that she wasn't dealing with the child-like Ryuuki right now. Just like last night...

_Damn._

"Shuurei, I am the emperor, yes, but I'm also a man. Have you any idea idea how much I longed to hold you in my arms like that? How happy I was?" He looked despairingly at her and his voice trembled. He tried to close the gap one more time but Shuurei backed away again. Though this time she could make only a few steps until her back hit something hard and rough- the trunk of the plum tree. Ryuuki left her this last little space, not following, trying not scare her away, not to corner her. Instead he leisurely took her hand and ran his thumb over the back of her hand, gently and very softly. For a moment no one said a word and the air was tense and thick between them.

So much had changed since the day they'd made their agreement. That gamble she was so sure to win that she didn't hesitate to join. But now Ryuuki saw her here in front of the trunk, her breath trembling under his light touch and confusion evident in her eyes. Although she was still denying this with words he was certain that the feeling he felt for her since two long years ago had claimed her heart now as well.

_Love._

He didn't know what it was exactly that gave him that assurance- the nervous swiftness in her movements or maybe the way she looked at him when she wasn't aware of it? Ryuuki only knew that regarding Shuurei, he'd become quite observant in the last years. He'd always wanted to treasure those precious, rare meetings with her, wanted to burn every smile and move she made deep within his mind. And tonight her behavior toward him was definitely different from other times. No matter how much she wanted to hide it from him, to Ryuuki it was obvious. Knowing this made him indeed want to see her again give in to the needs she possessed but still failed to understand. She was so beautiful, so lovely and tempting to him in that moment that he had to shove the urge aside to kiss her. But that would have been the wrong thing to to now. It was too early for that.

Ryuuki took a deep breath to calm himself down before speaking "Shuurei, you made me me man I am now, sought the emperor out--"

"But... but you said you can´t be emperor for my sake anymore." she chipped in, confounded by his words.

"Yes, that is true," he answered and decided to switch shortly to formal speech again to give his words more credibility. "We are emperor of Saiunkoku and we will be emperor until the day we die. This is a duty we can and _do not _want to abandon." Her gasp made him pause. It almost seemed to him as if Shuurei wasn't used to hearing such serious words from him. Ryuuki made sure his serious expression softened before he went on, "**I **am morethan this duty, this elitist birthright given to me. Remember, you once promised to see the man in me, not the emperor. And yet, now you take the fact of me being emperor as an excuse to keep running away from me. It´s not fair."

Shuurei opened her mouth to reply, but got distracted all of a sudden by Ryuuki's warmth all around her as he closed the last gap between them and embraced her, leaving her pressed against the trunk of the plum tree. Her breath accelerated, in sync with her thudding heart and she didn't know where and how to classify all the different feelings which were currently darting through her body. Shuurei knew she should scream at Ryuuki for cornering her so, force him to let her go, but right now she was simply too confused for that. Also there was a small part of her- a really tiny one- which wanted to surrender to this comfortable warmth and embrace him back. Shuurei fought against this stupid urge and asked herself since when was Ryuuki able to undo her like that with just a few moves?

"It´s not fair, Shuurei," he repeated, whispering it in her ear.

Then he touched her cheek, stroking his fingertips from there to her temple, tracing down the jaw line until he reached her chin. Ryuuki enjoyed her reaction to this light touch, which resulted in an unintentional shivering of her lips. Knowing he had Shuurei's full attention now he went on "… and I don't understand, why you keep running away... when you are feeling..." the young emperor bent down to her and left the sentence unfinished to kiss her lips very tenderly.

"_this _?!" he added as the short, coaxing kiss was finished and he looked deeply in her eyes. Although there was a shift in her mood and she had given in to that kiss, he knew he was still playing with fire.

"R-R-Ryuuki," Shuurei exclaimed. She was flustered and pressed herself against the tree until she felt a piercing ache in her back from the rough bark of the trunk behind her. Her lips tingled and her legs felt weak after this kiss. _Why was that? _She felt a strange need to run away and to stay in his arms at the same time. It was utterly bewildering to her.

"I-I… can't," Shuurei managed to bring out.

"Just like me you are also more than just your duty," the young emperor cut in and drew her closer. Tentatively, he began to kiss her chin leisurely, over the jaw-line until he reached her earlobe. "So please don't run away," he hushed into Shuurei's ear, his breath caused her to tremble. His long fingers slid through her silky hair and over the nape of her neck, tenderly caressing it. "From me," Ryuuki murmured in her ear before he started to kiss it, the little places of her earlobe, the hollow behind the shell and inebriated himself on the sweet scent of her skin.

"Ryuuki." Shuurei intended to let his name out as a protest, to shake him to his senses again. But it sounded too soft for this... almost like a moan. Her tiny hands, which she had reluctantly positioned between his chest and hers to keep a tiny bit of distance, were slowly falling to the side, clasping into the fabric of his robe. Ryuuki's nearness and the brushes of his lips on her sensitive flesh made her head spin and her knees weak.

She'd never understood matters of the heart and body, had little experience in things between a man and a woman before last night and actually never wanted those things bothering her. Yet she felt that she was about to slip into his arms again, to get lost in the feelings which unfurled like a spiral through her whole body, so warm and alluring. She felt his hands running over the silky fabric on her back, drawing little circles around her scapula and down her spine, which made her unintentionally shiver again. Suddenly his lips were on hers, this kiss more wanting, needy, yet gentle. The feel of his lips on her own crumbled the last resistance Shuurei held up to this point. No matter how hard she tried to deny it, something inside her didn't want him to stop. Rather, she wanted to get lost in his arms, those feelings... It was undoubtedly something Ryuuki had shaken awake within her last night- the feeling of being a normal woman, loved and desired by a man. But why must that man be Ryuuki? He of all people-the emperor of Saiunkoku?

She sighed against his lips and Ryuuki slanted his mouth over hers, taking the kiss deeper. Shuurei knew she had lost the inner battle not give in to his wooing, as she instinctively drove herself closer to the warmth of his body and leaned in to his passionate, loving kiss. The world spun around and her head felt dizzy, so she wrapped her arms around his shoulder and clung with tiny hands to hold herself upright.

Ryuuki ended the kiss how it begun, light and coaxing, nipping a last time on her lower lip before pulling away in exchange for oxygen. It left them both panting breathlessly, the air between them even _more_ electrifying than before. He entwined her hands into his, leaving Shuurei unable to touch only to feel. He simply needed to show her how much he loved her. So he lowered his head again, dipping kisses on her exposed throat, regarding every freckle of her skin.

"Nooo," she softly yelped, which sounded more like a tremulous moan than a protest from her lips. Shuurei's eyes shut, her little hands clawing into his long fingers, frustrated to be unable to hug him back. Ryuuki continued paying attention to the small section of flesh near her collarbone which lay bare, licking it. Then he released her hands and caught hold of the ties of her robe, tugging them apart slightly, just enough to loosen the upper portion of it before claiming her hands one more time. Shuurei shivered at the sudden chill she felt on her bare skin but even more at the feeling of his lips on her slender shoulders, her clavicle, while his faster breath tickled and teased her. Her head was in chaos, unable to think coherently, she clung to the warmth spreading in her belly and relished the feeling, in his arms.

Normally she was a woman who liked to have control over the things she did, relying on arguments and rationality. Yet at the same time she also had a very passionate, emotional side she almost never showed, hiding it under the surface. She rarely allowed herself to act on it and feel like a woman, for the sake of being an official in a mens world, solely devoted to her work. Yet now Shuurei shivered at his loving fondling and enjoyed how he made her feel. He made her feel like a woman but not weak. It was rather a side Shuurei didn't know before or hadn't payed attention to before. A side of herself where she could just be. Without caring about keeping control she felt free, actually.

Ryuuki quickly learned to love seeing her this way, her face delighted in pleasure, with her mouth making tiny whimpering sounds. Right in that moment she was detached from all sorrows, not fussing about right or wrong, forgetting about being an official, about her duty. Right in that moment she was just Shuurei and most lovely to him. He might have played with fire before, by acting so forceful and by wooing her repeatedly. With that, he now had lit the flame within her himself. She was indeed enjoying herself.

He ducked his head one more time, kissing her neckline in a nipping, teasing way and enjoying the enticing taste of her skin again. Eventually, Ryuuki released her hands and she immediately seized the opportunity to wrap her arms around him, to pull him nearer and moaned against his chest. Seeing this fiery reaction of her only motivated him more. So, while ignoring his own growing ache, his hands roved over her flanks and went up to the dainty but delicate curves of her bosom. The skin under his hand felt so smooth, so pure that it almost seemed like a sin to touch it with his calloused fingers. Yet the way she responded to his touch as he gentlely cupped her breast in his hand, how she huddled her body against his own and whimpered in pleasure, showed him it wasn't wrong at all. It was only natural. She fit so perfectly in his arms, as if it was a matter of course to love her, as if it was destined that he was the only man making her feeling all that.

_The only man_, a tiny wave of raw possessiveness darted through him at this thought and his lips searched hers again for a savoring kiss, claiming her. Shuurei joyously welcomed his mouth and she returned the kiss with the same frantic energy he had started it. The boiling passions let them replace the coaxing, soft kisses with a heated game of open mouth kisses and grazing tongues. She felt the same desire as last night starting to rampantly rage within her. Like a fire it blazed through her body, again lit by him. She wanted to feel more, feel all of it. And Ryuuki was more than willing to fulfill her request. After a still moment where he breathlessly leaned his forehead onto her tiny shoulder and gasped for air, his lips continued to travel down again. Her hands however, were restlessly fluttering over the fabric of his kingly attire and searched dazed for skin of his to caress. He allowed himself a small groan before he suppressed his own untamed needs again and continued with his task. Much more important than his own arousal was to make her aware of her own desires and most importantly of the intensity of his love for her. Oh, how much he loved her, his heart drummed hard against his ribcage and was overflowing with thousands of emotions as he got lost in the taste of her delicate skin. Ryuuki cherished every bit of its silky smoothness and would love to never stop kissing it again.

He let his fingers ran over the sides of her undergarment, and Shuurei shuddered in anticipation as he shove it lightly aside. His head dived between the hollow of her breasts, followed the trace of her curves with his tongue and nipped at the sensitive skin of her nipple. Her breath caught as the fingertips of his hand on her bottom roamed past her thigh in an awfully slow, circling motion and eventually found its way to the damp folds in between, fondling her most sensitive spot. She mewled and writhed under his seductive torture and welcomed the ache as she keenly pressed herself at the rough trunk behind her to ease some of the tension he had so constantly built up within her.

It didn't help, her hunger for more kept increasing; it became almost insatiable. Her whole body tingled with arousal, her tiny fist clawed in the silky strands of his hair and tousled roughly through it. She arched her hips toward Ryuuki to beckon him to increase his rubbing but much to her frustration he kept the same steady, torturously slow speed. As Ryuuki suddenly stopped, he earned a protesting whine from her quivering lips. So in order to tame her, he cocked his head and silenced her protests with his lips. She gleefully received those for an ardent kiss she never thought she was capable of. Desperately searching for a physical outlet for all the raw, burning emotions inside, Shuurei pressed herself on his body, seeking his nearness. She heard him gasping in their fervent kiss and an animal grunt escaped his lips before he pulled away.

Ryuuki needed a moment to recover from the surprisingly passionate way she occupied his mouth and body before he began to kneel down to her. Frustrated to be deprive of the closeness of him, she glared at him through hooded eyes, dissatisfied. Though as he bent down, his ragged breathing tickling the skin around her navel and wet kisses gracing the underside of her belly... all of her disappointment subsided. There was barely enough time for Shuurei to wonder what he was going to do, when she felt something hot, slide between her soaked folds… and then her mind went blank. She felt ecstatic, weightless, with every twirl of his tongue she was falling more apart… but in the most blissful way Shuurei had ever experienced. She bit roughly on her lips to not scream, to keep everything in, but she couldn't hinder a moan of his name. At this, his grip around her hips tightened, pulling her even closer. His world was Shuurei. Tasting her wholly, her sweet smell lingering everywhere and hearing her moaning _his _name in sheer pleasure, overwhelmed his senses. Being able to bestow her with such delight filled him with deep satisfaction.

She was his _everything._

He delved further into her heat, supporting her trembling, buckling legs with one of his arms and held her upright while his other hand drew caressing circles over her back. He enjoyed every tremor in her thighs, how she wildly she disheveled his hair with her hands and caressed his neck. She was so passionate since she let herself go and he loved it. Shuurei took one hand away from his head and pressed it to her mouth in order to muffle the escalating cries which came constantly over her lips now. Pressing them together alone wasn't enough anymore. Not when he had filled every fiber of her senses with lust and made her get lost in ecstasy.

Suddenly, all the feelings inside her exploded in one furious, blissful wave and her body thrashed hard against him. For a few seconds she just shuddered before her body relaxed again and every bone within her felt limp. Ryuuki looked up and a sly smile curved around his lips as he enjoyed her utterly content facial expression. He couldn't deny that he was proud to be the one man making her experience the passion of lovemaking and unfolding her desires. After one last kiss he pulled her undergarment back on again and slowly stood up, while placing kisses randomly on her body. Even though he was still very aroused from everything, he felt almost as content as Shuurei. He'd been able to show her his love and it seemed to him that she'd finally understood. With a smile he embraced Shuurei tightly and the rhythm of her wildly thumping heart and accelerated breaths were in sync with his own. For a long, peaceful moment they just stood there in the hidden part of the palace garden and held each other close, enjoying the comfortable nearness.

"Shuurei, I love you," he whispered into her ear and broke the silence between them.

Shuurei, who was still dazed and inebriated from the after effect just let out a humming "Hmm," before she buried her face into his chest again.

"And it will be spring soon."

"Hmm," she hummed again. Yet with Ryuuki talking, her mind slowly returned from oblivion. _Why is he talking about that?_

He softly kissed her hair and hesitated a moment, before saying, "So, regarding our bet... please forget about it.

* * *

_**Various notes:**_

_Squeeeeaaaal *melts to puddle*_

_What? I´m supposed to say something clever and author-ish like here? Nahh, I won´t...err can´t . Not after having written THIS. So count me off this time, yeah? Thx xD ( I apologize hereby for the exert use of smutty things in combination with Ryuuki-- ….but it was FUN *silly laugh*) _

_Okay silly mood aside, for a moment of my two cents why I like this chapter (along with the following one) most of all. So to celebrate the halftime in this story I´ll bore you with a bit insight of the "why´s" now ;D Skip it if you want._

_The anew lemony scenes weren´t just fanservice or to indulge in my new blossomed love for smutty things, no they had a purpose. As we all know Shuurei, she is an insecure person when it comes to herself, love is an alien emotion to her and she likes to avoid emotional matters that could shake her heart. In short she is afraid of falling in love, to let go. In the novel is stated by her that "she can´t be with Ryuuki, so she has to keep running away from him" Though there also because of reasons I have omitted in my FF here (Bara-hime) but the core of it stays true. And this is exactly what Ryuuki did now, he made her "let go", let her facing her desires, her other "weaker" self as a normal woman she is so afraid to show anyone. Other than Sakujun who made her aware of that first, Ryuuki is able to shake her deeper inside. Emotionally. Well, that is where I´ll give Shuurei a lot to think about for the rest of my FF :D _

_As for Ryuuki: Though, as much I love Ryuuki´s child like anime-cuteness, you might have recognized that he differs (a bit) from there. I simply like the serious Ryuuki of the novel more, the more grown-up. Sure he still has his insecurities, fears and silly antics xD at times, but that is what makes him human. Also, his char evolved at the end of the anime a lot and I love how serious he has become with everything. Thus, with my FF taking place after the two seasons it´s obvious that I let him act more serious because of that as well. Serious about his ruling, serious about Shuurei . And no one can tell me that he doesn´t know how to threat a woman, how to bring out the wanted reaction of one. As Shuuei remarked in the anime he has been with (several) women before. Though of course being with Shuurei this way is for him a whole different pair of shoes. ...I mean he is just soo in love with her, he´d worship the ground she´s walking on ^,^ To some, his demeanor might seem too forced or even kinda aggressive in this chapter but as explained above it´s for a purpose. He´s not stupid and recognized the change within her. Aside the fact that I don´t think that any woman being cherished like he did with Shuurei can stay reasonable (xD) or hide her inner self/emotions like Shuurei tried at the beginning. What a clever guy lol. _

_Though, it´s still a long way to go, so I hope you´ll enjoy the ride in the emotional rollercoster, w00t :D As always, thx for reading this chapter/FF so far and my authoress-rambling as well. Sorry for its length though *drop*. Time to shut up xD. Have fun with the (soon following) rest and if you liked it , being the crazy fangirl I am I´ve written more SaiMono-stories to enjoy ^______^_

_Meri _


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